Regional Seminar on Census Data Dissemination and Spatial Analysis for Arabic speaking Countries

Amman, Jordan, 16-19 May 2011

Sultanate OF OmanMinistry Of National Economy

Directorate General of Social Statistics

Use of technological tools in the dissemination of census data

Prepared by Hamed ALDagheishi

The Sultanate of Oman conducted the Third population, housing and

establishments census in December 2010. Its provided a wide range of

demographic and other statistical data that contributed to the formulation of

development plans and met most of the users needs.

The dissemination of data strictly followed the statistical law set by the

Royal decree No.29/2001, which maintain confidentially of individual data.

According to this law, it is prohibited to publish data unless in an aggregate

form.

Introduction

The main objective of the dissemination of census data is to make it available for the public in domestic and international levels.

The following goals are important to be achieved in order to obtain effective results and to achieve the desired development from the dissemination of census data:

• Enriching the communication between producer and user of the Data. • Encouraging everyone to get and use census data in decision-making with regard to their fields.• Making the society much more aware of the importance of the information we can get from the census.• Realizing the interests of various populations and ensuring the completion of the census as fully as possible.

Objectives of the dissemination of census data

- Although 1993 census data were disseminated as published tables, no in-depth analysis was carried out by Ministry and other government agencies.

-In 2003, the Ministry of National Economy paid more attention to analysis and evaluation of the census results to assist the data users in understanding the census results, In order to achieve this goal, the Ministry proposed a series of 9 short studies and 6 in-depth studies, and involved many stakeholders

Experience of Oman in previous censuses (1993 and 2003)

- In 1993, the dissemination was done through hard copy publications such as pamphlets and books.

-The 2003 census results were disseminated in a better manner because of the developments in technology such as CD and use of internet in dissemination.

-Regarding the data that was not published, Census administrator had to prepare and process the data upon request either by public sector, private sector, individual users and academic researchers .

Media of data dissemination

Experience of Oman in previous censuses (1993 and 2003)

- In 2003 census, Geographical Information System (GIS) was used to facilitate census mapping in the production of census results, the socio- economic Atlases were produced. The 2003 Atlas was enhanced by satellite Imagery and maps for every governorate, region and Wilayat. Its produced as a hard copy & as a soft copy.

GIS and Mapping product

Experience of Oman in previous censuses (1993 and 2003)

- According to the rapid development in information technology, the possibility of publishing printed volumes for users in libraries can be reduced significantly to avoid over-stocking and waste.

-The plan is to use the website & CDs extensively and to make the data available to support different types of users.

-In order to facilitate the dissemination of data, a well-organized publicity strategy is developed and executed.

2010 data dissemination

The technological tools in the dissemination of census data

Tabulation and Dissemination System

.

Background

Space-Time Research Pty Ltd will manage the end to end “Tabulation and

Dissemination System” for Census 2010 which will specifically focus on the

following:

A. Install the SuperSTAR Tabulation and Dissemination Solution (desktop,

server, web server, etc)

B. Load the data from the Census’s Oracle s schemas

C . Configure user access, confidentiality routines

D . Configure SuperWEB mapping (Google base maps, statistical boundaries

from ArcGIS Server)

E . Set up SuperVIEW report(s)

Software Description SuperSTAR is a software suite providing analytical processing, reporting and

dissemination functionality of quantitative data at any aggregation level required. It

contains a number of modules that may be utilized collectively or independently to

address adaptation of source data, administration, charting , thematic mapping

and reporting requirements. These Modules are *:-

SuperVIEW , Unlimited Users on the population Census

SuperWEB , Unlimited Users on the population Census

SuperTABLE , Unlimited Users on the population Census

SuperCROSS , Unlimited Users on the Statistics Department on the population Census

SuperCHANNEL, Unlimited Users on the Statistics Department on the population Census

SuperSERVER, Unlimited Users on the Statistics Department on the population Census

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* This License permits to use the 1993, 2003 and 2010 Population Census data

SuperVIEW SuperVIEW is made up of a number of different reports to show a particular

theme in the data. Its an interactive data analysis and visualization. Easy to use tabulation and analytics provide a DATA EXPERIENCE resulting in a

wide variety of tables, charts, and maps.

SuperWEBSuperWEB™ is a Web solution for ad hoc tabulation, providing access and analysis of large privacy protected, confidentialized microdata tables of billions of cells.SuperWEB is designed for people who want to ask their own questions and create their own reports rather than rely on information produced by other people. Unlike other Business Intelligence and reporting products SuperWEB provides access to all the available data and allows users to follow a Query-Answer-Query process. This means data is turned into knowledge much quicker.Extremely fast queries allow for self-service querying and generation of integrated cross tabulations, charts, and maps. Data presented on a map can be examined in aggregated form or in detailed unit record view format.  SuperWEB is integrated with ArcGIS and used for geospatial analysis of data in government data provider applications around the world.

SuperTABLESuperTABLE is the free table reader component of the SuperSTAR suite.

It uses a drag-and-drop interface to create tables with any number of dimensions. Tables can be re-arranged, calculations added, and then the table can be printed or exported to a number of formats.

SuperCROSS SuperCROSS™ is the desktop client for the SuperSTAR platform. It has a

powerful and intuitive, drag-and-drop graphical interface that facilitates fast,

flexible tabulation and analytics for information producers.

SuperCROSS is an easy-to-use solution for analyzing data at any level of

detail, and then presenting the information in a variety of formats including

tables, charts, and maps. Powerful, customizable confidentiality plug-in allow

for greater automation of disclosure control, eliminating mistakes and reducing

the time required to publish information.

SuperCHANNEL

The SuperCHANNEL Advanced Course is designed to build on participants' existing

knowledge of SuperCHANNEL.

Through lectures, demonstrations, and hands-on labs, participants will be exposed to

SuperCHANNEL's full capacity. Participants will gain the experience essential for

creating more flexible and efficient SuperSTAR databases.

The target audience for this course includes: database administrators, data

managers, business areas technical support providers,SuperSTAR administrators.

SuperSERVER

The SuperSERVER provides the essential knowledge and skills for people who are

responsible for setting up and maintaining a SuperSTAR environment.

Its contains a number of mandatory and optional topics (depending on the

SuperSTAR products being used) and therefore can be tailored to participants’

needs. The trainer will assist in developing a course best suited to your environment.

The Demo

http://www.spacetimeresearch.com/data-visualization-gallery.html

http://superstar.spacetimeresearch.com/mone#/

The technological tools in the dissemination of census data

Interactive Database for Children in Oman

by DevInfo GameWorks

.

Background

The Director General of Social Statistics and UNICEF are interested in

exploring innovative database technology for creating an interactive

database for children in Oman. This database will be used by children

in Oman to improve their statistical literacy about social and economic

issues in the country. The database will be child-friendly, easy to use

and interactive to allow children to play-and-learn using real information

pertaining to Oman .

Objective

Create a system which will be used by children, both online and on CDs, to

learn more about their country and the achievements made in human

development.

This interactive database will be easy for children in Oman to use and will be

effective in helping them explore socio-economic information about their

country and the region.

The database will be in Arabic with an option for English. Statistical literacy

among children and youth of Oman is an important result that will be achieved

by the interactive database planned under this initiative.

Idea

The idea of participatory media is well-established in the areas of text, images,

audio, and video, and game play certainly incorporates many-to-many

participation. BY DIGW Users can:

-PLAY games with others online, or as solitaire

-DESIGN games from game templates, using DevInfo data and/or other data

sources

-SHARE games with "buddy" users, interest groups, or school-based classes

-DISCUSS the games online via chat, "message walls", and private messaging

The Demo

http://www.devinfo.info/gameworks/

Public access to census information is an important issue,

the dissemination of census data needs to make the data available for

agencies and individuals who use the data for variety of projects.

These issues can be achieved by utilizing the new technology in this field.

Conclusion