<P> The recruitment process for permanent and temporary staff was held between early - 2007 and May 2011, it involved Capacity Building Training Projects, targeted recruitment, employment agencies and a nationwide advertising campaign through multiple channels . A projected 181,426 staff members were required for the Census, the phase ended with 169,225 recruited out 350,000 potential candidates - leaving a 6.96% shortfall . The largest gaps were in the Fieldwork Coordinators, Fieldwork Supervisors and Fieldworkers positions, as the Census was designed to be community based and some areas were without potential Fieldworkers . The logistics of Fieldworker payment was managed by Recruitment, Appointment, Administration, Payment, Termination and Reconciliation (RAAPTR) committee, who aimed to deliver payment a week after completion of work . </P> <P> Stats SA indicated that they would be recruiting 156,000 individuals for the Census 2011 operation including 120,000 fieldworkers, 30,000 supervisors and 6,000 census fieldwork coordinators . </P> <P> Census night was the night between 9 and 10 October 2011 . Approximately 20 million questionnaires were distributed during the 21 - day enumeration phase from 10 to 31 October 2011 and a two - week "mop - up exercise" following up on households missed during the enumeration phase . </P> <P> "The processing of about 15 million questionnaires commenced in January 2012, immediately after bringing the sealed EA boxes from the various census offices to the processing centre in Pretoria during December 2011 . Each box, and its contents, was assigned a store location position via a computerised store management system . Each time a box was required for any process it was called up and allocated through this system ." </P>

The census that was conducted in south africa in 2011