17 March 2021

Surfing the Internet is no longer the domain of the younger generations. The number of internet users has been also increasing among senior citizens for a long time. Over the fourth of the aged 65+ years use the Internet almost on a daily basis, 40% of them used it at least once during the last three months. The 2021 Census is designed so that also people with basic knowledge of the Internet can handle it.

“It can be said that a computer or the Internet is now already in all households that want to use these technologies, including households of senior citizens. Therefore, the Online Census is the best choice also for the elderly, especially when we take into account the issue of safety with regards to the current epidemic situation,” the President of the Czech Statistical Office, Marek Rojíček, explains.  

Eleven years ago, only 13% of senior citizens used the Internet at least once in three months, whereas last year it was over three times more. However, computer literacy is also increasing. One out of six senior citizens can handle text editors, one out of ten senior citizens uses spreadsheets. For example, 37% of people aged 65 to 75 years, who were online during the last year, search for relevant information on websites of authorities. What is also an interesting fact is that there are about 10 000 citizens aged over 65 years who do programming in Czechia.  

How do Czech senior citizens stand in comparison to senior citizens of other European countries? Although they rank in the lower half, they surpassed those of the same age from countries such as Italy, Portugal, and Poland. Senior citizens with the most advanced digital skills can be found on the British Isles or in Scandinavia, whereas the elderly from Romania, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia are worse off.

“Czech senior citizens are skilful as for digital skills. I believe that most of them will handle the online census form (questionnaire) without major issues. It was designed to be well arranged and, for example, only one or two questions are displayed at the same time. Moreover, one can return to the already answered questions whenever he/she wants to,” Robert Šanda, Director of the Population Statistics Department of the CZSO, assures. A guide is available to guide you throughout the whole process; when filling in the form, respondents can ask the chatbot (Czech only), which is prepared to answer the most frequent questions whenever they need. A video guide is available on the website of the Census. From 12 March, informational support for the upcoming Census and help for the public with filling in of census forms (questionnaires) is provided by the 2021 Census Contact Centre. The Centre is operating daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., including Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays at the following phone numbers: 840 30 40 50 and 253 253 683. However, you can also ask questions via e-mail to dotazy@scitani.cz or via chat in a virtual advisory centre for the 2021 Census

In case senior citizens will still be concerned about filling in the online census form (questionnaire), the Czech Statistical Office recommends them to ask for help those of their closer family who know better how to work with a computer. One adult can thus fill in the form not only for members of the household, but also for a wider family or for another close person with his/her consent.  

It will be possible to get counted online or via the paper census form

The Population and Housing Census is carried out once in ten years. It is aimed at acquiring precise and up-to-date data that serve to make planning of many aspects of the public life more effective. The 2021 Census is being prepared primarily as an online Census – for the first time in our history. People will be able to get counted in a simple and safe manner over the Internet at www.scitani.cz. They can thus fulfil their legal obligation easily from their homes without a need to be in contact with a census enumerator (census officer) or to visit a contact point of the Census.

The Population Census is organised by the Czech Statistical Office, an independent and apolitical authority, that collects and publishes data from the following domains: demography, economy, health, labour market and social security, culture, sport, tourism, education, and the environment. Since 1990, it has been processing and publishing results of all elections. The main principles of work of the CZSO are as follows: Independence, Impartiality, Objectivity, Accuracy and Reliability, Same information to everybody at the same time, Protection of confidential data. In 2020, 61% of the population trusted the Czech Statistical Office and thus it belongs to the most trustworthy institutions in the country, according to the Public Opinion Research Centre.

Contact:
Jolana Voldánová
2021 Census spokeswoman
Mobile phone number: +420 704 659 357
e-mail: jolana.voldanova@scitani.cz