Since the beginning of August, when the IBGE started the household collection of the 2022 Population Census, there have been many reports of census agents with difficulties in accessing condominiums in Belém (PA). Faced with so many closed doors, IBGE celebrates the partnerships that have given positive results: administrators who, in addition to ensuring the progress of the census in their condominiums, set an example for others to open their doors to enumerators.

In Pará, the area with the highest concentration of condominiums is the capital, Belém, especially the Batista Campos Subarea, which, in addition to the neighborhood of the same name, includes Campina, Fátima, Nazaré, Reduto, Umarizal and São Brás. More than 500 of the estimated 1,736 condominiums in Pará are in this subarea. Among the reasons for refusals is the residents' discomfort in informing their average income and CPF number. But, according to the State Technical Coordinator of the Census in Pará, Luiz Cláudio Martins, the lack of support from the administrators is what most hinders the collection in these places. “In view of these difficulties, we signed a partnership with the Housing Union (SINDCON/SECOVI/PA), months before the start of collection. Through the full support of its president, Nazareno Nogueira, we participated in events promoted by the union to publicize the census and we were also able to send printed material to more than 1200 administrators, via direct mail from Sindcon”, he highlights.

UE Pará also signed a partnership with the two largest condominium administrators in the state: Lótus, responsible for managing 203 condominiums, 90% of which are in Belém; and Síndica, which manages 110 condominiums in Greater Belém. “Both companies have been our partners, disseminating publicity material about the 2022 Census, through their internal communication channels”, explains the technical coordinator.

Administrator Alex Cavalcante with the IBGE team, at Lápis Lazuli building

These actions had an effect in many condominiums, generating low rates of refusals or even non-existent refusals. This was the case of the Lápis Lazúli building, in the neighborhood of Cremação, where, in just two days, all 30 households were registered, thanks to the support of the superintendent Alex Cavalcante. He says that he learned about the 2022 Census during the participation of the technical coordinator, Luiz Claudio Martins, in a Sindcon event, in July. Upon receiving the first contact from the enumerator, he began to take all measures to ensure the best possible quality of collection in the building. “We made available a table, on the ground floor, with all the infrastructure so that enumerators could carry out their work. Then, I informed the residents that enumerators would be at their disposal, in a reserved place on the ground floor or, if they preferred, they could go upstairs to interview them in their apartments. Residents were fully involved and we were quickly able to complete all the interviews,” he says.

Another successful partnership took place in the Ilha de Capri building (neighborhood of São Brás) where the support of the superintendent Oswaldo Barbosa was essential to make the procedure for collecting information from residents comfortable and safe, both for the enumerator and for the residents. Soon after the first contact with the IBGE team, the publicity material delivered was posted in places of great circulation. Mr. Barbosa posted a notice on the elevators and then wrote an internal bulletin to the residents, encouraging them to receive the enumerator or to go to the area, inside the building, where she would be available to carry out the interviews. “We are 100% registered. All the residents fulfilled their civic mission!”, he proudly said. “As citizens, we need to have this commitment to welcoming enumerators so that, at the end of this census, we can have a correct profile of the reality of our country!”, he defends.

Another successful case took place at the Park Brasi Condominiuml, in the Cabanagem district, where the manager Andréia Borcem allowed the census taker to enter even on Sundays and holidays. “During the week, many residents were not found home, as they were working. The enumertor's supervisor got in touch reporting the situation and I immediately released access. My own census was taken on a Sunday and everything went smoothly. There were no complaints from any resident. In all 187 households, the enumerator was well received”, says Ms. Borcem. “For me, this census is very important. We went through a pandemic where we slept with a number of people at home and woke up to the loss of someone, unfortunately. Now, we need to know how many we are and how we live. Knowing our current reality is necessary for us, as a society, to plan our lives from now on. And only the Census will be able to give us this information with precision”, said the manager.

Manager Suzana Matos and enumerator Karina Silva, at Chácaras Ipê building

At Chácaras Montenegro Ipê (Parque Verde neighborhood), manager Suzana Matos even created a QRCode to facilitate residents' access to the census agent responsible for the collection. At first, despite all the publicity made by Ms. Matos through whatsapp and posters on bulletin boards and elevators, the collection proceeded slowly. “There are 343 apartments in five towers. It's a lot of people! So, to make it easier, we created a QRCode with the enumerator's contacts, encouraging residents to schedule their interviews. From there, her work accelerated”, says Ms. Matos, who also allowed the IBGE employee to stay until 7:30 pm, giving her the opportunity to meet the residents when they returned to their homes, after work. “I've already arranged with the enumerator that if we're not finished by the end of November, I'll call every missing resident myself. I will try to convince the most resistant ones to come to my office, in the administration, to fill out their questionnaires. I am committed to only letting the enumerator leave with 100% of the households registered!”.

In recent weeks, new dissemination actions have been implemented by the UE Pará, through the State Coordination for the Publication of the 2022 Census, with the aim of raising awareness of landlords and condominium owners to open the doors to the 2022 Census. Among them, sending to local press information about the difficulties faced by the IBGE in the condominiums of Belém. The action received the support of several relevant communication groups in the state, such as TV Liberal (an affiliate of Rede Globo); TV SBT (which produced a story on the subject on national television) and TV Record; in addition to the radio stations CBN Amazônia, Cultura FM (which retransmits its signal throughout the state), and the two largest printed newspapers in the state: O Liberal and Diário do Pará, through the publication of articles in their printed and digital versions.