BEIJING -- China will dispatch some 2.1 million enumerators for the on-site registration of its national economic census starting on Jan 1, 2024, an official said Friday.

These census workers will go into businesses and communities to complete data collection and registration in 1.16 million census areas in nearly four months, Kang Yi, head of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said at a publicity event for the census.

China's national economic census takes place every five years. It helps obtain scientific and accurate statistical information for improving macroeconomic governance and scientifically formulating medium and long-term development plans.

The NBS carried out the preliminary work in the second half of the year, and the census will enter the stage of full implementation in 2024, with main tasks including on-site registration, spot checks of data quality, and the release of major data.