JEDDAH: A major media campaign will be held to enlighten the public on the importance of participating in the general census, which will be held in the second quarter of next year. The census will help authorities to devise the Kingdom’s development plans and meet future requirements of citizens.

Abdul Rahman Al-Hazza, spokesman for the Ministry of Culture and Information, said beginning next month his panel would publish monthly bulletins on the census. “We have discussed the various phases of the media campaign, making use of the print and electronic media,” he said. The bulletin will include news reports, interviews and articles.

“The main objective of this bulletin is to enhance public awareness and encourage people to cooperate with census officials to successfully carry out this national project,” Al-Hazza said.

The 2010 Saudi census coincides with those of other Gulf countries following a decision by GCC leaders. The census on population and housing will help not only development planners, but also researchers and marketing executives.

“It will collect information required by the government to boost social and economic development,” Al-Hazza said.

The General Statistics Department of the Ministry of Economy and Planning is the main organizer of the census. It has already completed the numbering of residential blocks in cities to facilitate the work of census officials and avoid duplication.

The department has already completed numbering residential blocks in 11 of the 13 provinces and is currently completing this project in Riyadh and Qassim provinces.

Al-Hazza said the numbering of residential blocks would facilitate distribution of census officials. “It will help identify the borders of each city,” he explained.

Saudi Arabia’s current population is estimated at more than 25 million, including seven million expatriates. The last census held in 2004 put the percentage of Saudis at 72.9 percent.

According to the 2004 census, there were 8,285,662 Saudi males (50.1 percent) and 8,243,640 Saudi females (49.9 percent). It put foreigners in the Kingdom at 4,271,598 males (69.5 percent) and 1,872,638 females (30.5 percent).