Yangon, Dec 31 (IANS): The provisional results of Myanmar's 2024 population and housing census show a total population of 51,316,756 on census night, September 30, 2024, according to a recent statement released by the Department of Population under the Ministry of Immigration and Population.
The figure includes 32,191,407 individuals directly enumerated and an additional 19,125,349 estimated using remote sensing technology for areas where enumeration was not possible, the statement said.
These figures will serve as a reference until the final census report is published, it added.
The provisional results indicate that, including the estimated population of unenumerated areas, 31 per cent of Myanmar's population resides in urban areas, while 69 per cent lives in rural areas, it said.
Yangon region has the highest proportion of urban residents at 68 percent, followed by Kachin State, Mon State, and Nay Pyi Taw, each with 35 per cent of their population living in urban areas, it added, Xinhua news agency reported.
The census night was set for September 30, 2024, with the enumeration process conducted from October 1 to 15, it said.
However, due to transportation challenges and security concerns, the enumeration period was extended in certain areas until the second week of December, it added.
The 2024 population and housing census was conducted using mobile tablets equipped with the computer-assisted personal interviewing system, eliminating the need for paper questionnaires, it said.
This digital approach enabled real-time data transmission to a central server, it added.
Since gaining independence, Myanmar has conducted nationwide censuses in 1973, 1983 and 2014, according to the department.
Meanwhile, the local agencies had recently revealed that Myanmar welcomed 977,154 foreign tourists during the first 11 months of 2024.
According to the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, this year's foreign tourist arrivals in Myanmar were down compared to the over 1.1 million foreign tourists who visited the country in the same period last year.
The primary sources of foreign visitors to Myanmar are China, Thailand, Japan, and India.
In 2023, 1.28 million foreign tourists visited Myanmar, according to the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism.