The census of Afghan refugees, aimed at providing definitive figures on their number and profile, began in all over Pakistan on Wednesday, officials said. The census, financed by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), would be carried out by 2,000 Pakistan government employees, in teams comprising one man and one woman, who will record all Afghans who arrived in Pakistan since December 1, 1979. A major information campaign, using radio, television and print media, is underway to ensure Afghans know of the census. Teams from the Government of Pakistan will spread out across the country for 10 days. The operation, costing the UNHCR $750,000, is the biggest of its kind ever since the refugee influx started in Pakistan over a quarter century ago. Although the UNHCR has been assisting Afghan refugees in Pakistan, there has never been a formal census or registration of all those who fled during the years of fighting in their homeland, officials said. However, the recent successful holding of Afghan presidential election in refugee camps in Pakistan seem to have resulted as true confidence boosters for the international organizations. During his January visit to Pakistan, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees chief had unveiled plans for a census. The objective of the census is not to push the Afghans out but to know who and where they are, and how they can be managed, officials said.
