Chapter 1 Introduction
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neighbourhoods. Whenever a service need arises at the neighbourhood level, languages appropriate to the neighbourhood are identified using the ACS. Public libraries often use this information to make decisions on which foreign language books need to be ordered and to determine the branches in which they need to be placed. ACS language data are also used in tandem with voter data to provide interpreter services for voters who are LEP, thus ensuring the city complies with voting rights statutes. The ACS is a rich source of information for not only the city, but also for its 59 community districts, which are part of the city’s government structure. Each district has a board, whose members are charged with identifying needs in their district and articulating local neighbourhood concerns. The division uses ACS “summary tables” to paint a comprehensive sociodemographic profile of each community district, as well as of the city overall. Data provided include information on educational attainment, poverty, the number and origins of immigrants, and languages spoken in each community district – and how this has changed over time. This information provides a vital framework for the deliberations of each community board. Compared with the information from the decennial census, the annual information from the ACS provides a timely snapshot of a constantly evolving city. Contributed by Arun Peter Lobo, Deputy Director, Population Division, New York City Department of City Planning
The lack of credible data has been a major constraint which has hampered the formulation of proper policies in both sending and receiving countries. In destination countries, census data provide the basis for most of the available global databases on migration stocks, especially in terms of traditional migration routes. See, for example, the micro sample of the United States Census and the American Community Survey (text box 1). In countries of origin, surveys with special migration questions or modules generate relevant data about the impact of migration and remittances on poverty reduction, education and health in sending communities. There is, however, a particular dearth of reliable global data on internal migrants. Cross-national comparisons of internal migration are hindered by widespread variation in data collection practices (Esipova, Pugliese and Ray, 2013). The IMAGE project, which identifies forms of data on internal migration, found that 109 out of 193 UN Member States were collecting data from multiple sources, linking data from population registers and national surveys (Bell et al., 2014). Table 1 sets out the advantages and disadvantages of different data sources – censuses, surveys, population registers and other administrative sources – in terms of gathering information on migration flows.