Mozambique to Hold National Census in 2027

June 3, 2025

(3 Minutes Read)

The general population and housing census will take place from August 1–15, 2027, for the first time using digital platforms, with results available in six months.

The Mozambican National Statistics Institute (INE) expects to register 36 million inhabitants in the 2027 population census, ten million more than in the 2017 census, spending €96.2 million on the operation, it was announced on Monday.

When presenting the organisational structure of the plan for the fifth general population and housing census, INE President Elisa Ana Mónica Magaua said that growth is expected compared to the 2017 operation, when just over 26 million inhabitants were registered in Mozambique.

The general population and housing census will take place from August 1–15, 2027, for the first time using digital platforms, with results available in six months.

The population census, said Elisa Ana Mónica Magaua, is estimated to cost just over USD110 million, with the World Bank already guaranteeing initial funding of USD12.7 million. The INE president also gave assurances that conditions were in place for conducting the census of people displaced by terrorist attacks and other climatic events.

The Prime Minister of Mozambique, Maria Benvinda Levi, who was present at the launch of the fifth population census, called for everyone to get involved in the activity, arguing that it is an initiative that aims to assess the country’s progress in different areas.

In May, the Mozambican government announced that the 2027 population census will determine “how many children, young people, adults and elderly people there are in the country. The census will help to better plan to solve the problems of the general public,” he insisted.

The National Statistics Institute (INE) estimates that the Mozambican population will reach 34 million by 2025, compared to just over 26 million in the last census, conducted in 2017.