“A little bit of effort can make a huge difference. It is the only way we can give governments and private investors the facts about our region,” he said. 

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) will conduct the Australian Census of Population and Housing Survey on Tuesday, August 9. 

“The census comes around every five years and is considered by many to be at best, a nuisance, and by some, to be an attack on their privacy,” Mr Stewart said.

“However, it is critical to know that our governments and policy makers use the information you provide in the Census to estimate Australia’s overall and individual area population. 

“The data also serves as a guide for the distribution of government funds and the planning of services for your community, such as housing, transport, education, hospitals, as well as programs for industry, the environment and regional development.”

Mr Stewart said census data is also used by individuals, industry, business and organisations in the public and private sectors to make decisions on policy, planning and investment issues that heavily impact on our lives.

“We have towns in our Northern Inland Region, which due to Census figures, are considered by our Governments and policy makers to be in decline. All this due, on some occasions, to a ‘hand full’ of numbers. Conversely, we have towns considered to be growth centres by similar small numbers,” Mr Stewart said.