Support for Deaf to take part in Census 2023 with sign language questions

Monday, 5 December 2022

All questions in the 2023 Census will be translated to New Zealand Sign Language to help Deaf people take part.

A project to make it easier for Deaf and hard of hearing people to participate in Census 2023 is under way.

Statistics New Zealand, with the help of Deaf Aotearoa, Te Herenga Waka and members of the Deaf community, is translating all census questions into New Zealand Sign Language.

Once completed, more than 80 NZSL videos with closed captioning will be available on the official census website.

”Making the census as accessible as possible to all people of Aotearoa is a key part of what we are doing differently in the 2023 Census,” Statistics New Zealand spokesman Simon Mason said.

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National Foundation for Deaf and Hard of Hearing’s Natasha Gallardo welcomes a move to make the census process more accessible for her community.

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“We are working hard to remove barriers to participation in the next census so that Deaf and disabled communities can take part more easily and be better represented in census data.'

The New Zealand Sign Language Board uses census data to understand how widespread the use of sign language is around the country.

It funds initiatives to improve access to NZSL and help Deaf people connect with others learning sign language.

Deaf Aotearoa chief executive Lachlan Keating said he is thrilled to see the 2023 census will be made available inNZSL for the first time.

'This is a huge win for the Deaf community who will now have access to the census questions in their language,” he said.

'This shows a real level of respect for New Zealand Sign language, an official language of Aotearoa. This will enable more Deaf New Zealanders to participate fully in the census.”

National Foundation for Deaf and Hard of Hearing’s Natasha Gallardo welcomed the news.

'It is heartening that more steps are being introduced to ensure we are not marginalising people who rely on NZ Sign Language to communicate,” she said.

'It will ensure the Census process is more accessible to the Deaf Community.'

The 2018 Census found 23,000 people were using NZSL, including around 4600 Deaf people.