英语杂谈：102 Domestic and Global Migrants

Expatriates in China will join the country's sixth national census¹ starting November 1st and answer eight questions on their basic information, which will not include income and religious affiliation².

Besides, the some 6 million trained census takers will focus on migrant workers from rural areas and urban residents who do not live at the places they registered with the police.

Wu Jia has more.

Reporter:

Figures from the United Nations show about 60 countries around the world are carrying out a census this year, and China will be one of them beginning in November. For the first time, expatriates in the country and people from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan will be included in the national census.
Zhang Weimin is the deputy director of the National Bureau of Statistics.

"Including expatriates in the census is an international practice but it will be the first time for China to do so. We will do this also because the United Nations suggested to us to help count the global migrant population."

Expatriates only need to answer eight questions, which are not very different from those on the entrance registration³ form, to door-to-door census takers.

"The purpose of the census is different from entrance registration, so it is necessary to answer those questions again. The census standard time is 12 a.m. November 1st, so any changes since entering the country will be added. Also, the census will need the information to help public policymaking in the specific communities where they live."

Feng Nailin, census director of the statistics bureau, says the large migrant population including urban residents who are not living where they registered, and hidden residents who have never registered with police, will make the census more difficult.

"China's population flow has been increasing in terms of size, range and frequency. It is very difficult to precisely⁴ count migrant workers who often move. Besides, about 30 to 40 percent of urban residents do not live where they registered originally – that is another problem. Like Beijing and Shanghai, this number could be more than a half."

China carries out a national census once a decade. Due to the country's rapid urbanization, some experts expect a huge demographic change since the 5th census in 2000.

For CRI, I'm Wu Jia.

 

1 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

2 affiliation   

n.联系，联合

参考例句：

• There is no affiliation between our organization and theirs,even though our names are similar.尽管两个组织的名称相似，但我们之间并没有关系。
• The kidnappers had no affiliation with any militant group.这些绑架者与任何军事组织都没有紧密联系。

3 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

4 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。