Population Data Solutions

Who It Is For

Positium's population data solutions are tailored to meet the needs of various entities, including government agencies conducting censuses and population surveys, municipalities managing urban planning and public services, and organisations involved in emergency response and public health.

Our Approach

We use mobile positioning data (MPD) sourced from mobile network operators, to deliver accurate and up-to-date population estimates.

Our comprehensive approach includes data processing, integration, and advanced GIS-based solutions, ensuring continuous updates and enhanced accuracy. Our services extend to providing sophisticated GIS-based solutions for census, featuring interactive dashboards, custom digital maps, spatial analysis reports, and consulting to optimise workflows and visualisations.

By integrating MPD with traditional census methods, Positium enhances the census process, bridging data gaps, ensuring continuous updates, improved accuracy, and support for ongoing operational needs.

GIS Solutions for Census

Positium provides advanced GIS-based solutions which include:

interactive dashboards displaying key geographical data in a user-friendly and visually appealing manner;
custom digital maps designed to meet specific needs and requirements;
spatial analysis reports highlighting key insights and trends within geographical data;
data integration and automation to ensure timely updates and accurate visualisations;
consulting services to help clients define visualisation goals, optimise workflows, and develop customised solutions.

Integration with the Status Quo

Traditional census methods are resource-intensive and infrequent. Positium enhances the census process with MPD to:

provide continuous updates;
enhance accuracy and fill gaps in traditional data;
support ongoing operational needs between census periods.

Success Stories

Several countries have successfully implemented MPD for population statistics, and showcased the technology’s effectiveness in improving data accuracy and operational efficiency. For example, in Ukraine, where MPD was used in 2022 to reconcile discrepancies in population estimates, resulting in more accurate and reliable data even during a crisis.

Omani e-Census 2020: Positium and Nortal implemented a GIS project for the National Centre for Statistics and Information, enhancing data collection and processing capabilities. See more.

Estonian official statistics: Statistics Estonia cooperated with Positium for census preparation and compared MPD, survey data and registry-based home locations for the ‘signs of life’ methodology. See more.

Support and Endorsements

The use of MPD in population censuses is supported by various stakeholders, including national governments, international organisations like the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Statistics Division (UNSD), International Telecommunication Union, and mobile network operators. These collaborations are crucial for accessing data, ensuring data privacy and security, and achieving accurate census results.

Positium is recognised for our contributions to official statistics and big data applications globally through our international and national collaborations with organisations working in official statistics.

Planning Stage

Objective: Use big data to enhance the population data planning process by producing quick indicators and addressing the dynamics of the population.

Data access and system setup – Establishing access to mobile network operator (MNO) datasets and deploying an MPD processing system.
System integration and testing – Integrating MPD systems, setting up data feeds, and conducting thorough testing and pilot phases.
Population statistics – Providing basic population statistics (residence anchors, secondary home anchors, work-time anchors) over a six-month historical period. Generating MPD-based population estimates for all local administrative units (LAUs), highlighting discrepancies between existing estimates and MPD assessments.
Displacement matrix – Showing the most suitable and unsuitable times and days for each enumeration area through a displacement matrix (how many people are away from home during some days, where they are, etc.).

Data Production / Census Enumeration Stage

Objective: Provide near-real time data updates during data collection to ensure operational efficiency and data flow in support of actions in the field.

Subscriber presence estimates – offering MPD-based estimates of subscriber presence at the enumeration area level.
Estimate population in hard-to-reach areas – use MPD-based population estimates in areas that are inaccessible for security or other reasons.
Migration patterns – assessing short-term and middle-term migration patterns to understand regular commuting and seasonal movements.
Continuous data processing – setting up a continuous data processing feed to cover the census reference date and entire enumeration period.
Mitigating under-coverage risk – identify geographic pockets with potentially underreported population figures by cross-referencing mobile subscriber density with early census returns. Enables targeted follow-up and outreach.

Validation and calibration of MPD in sampling areas

Post-Census

Post-census analysis – enhancing census results with MPD-based post-census analysis.
Statistical indicators calculation – calculating additional statistical indicators based on MPD.
Data validation and enhancement – validating and correcting population counts to improve the quality of census indicators.
Regular population dynamics monitoring and database updates – continue the time series of population data production during intercensal periods, offering insights into daily and seasonal migration patterns, emergency displacement, urban-rural shifts, etc.

Get Started

Transform your population data collection with Positium's innovative solutions. for a customised consultation and detailed proposal.