The census will reveal information about Ireland that will help the state to plan for the future.
Ireland will hold census on Sunday, 23 April, and the Central Statistics Office (CSO) is encouraging every household to complete their form.
Census 2006 introduces several new questions, including ethnic background, women's fertility, and voluntary work.
For the first time, the census will ask people to describe their ethnic or cultural background.
At the launch of the census, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern highlighted the importance of full participation to ensure an accurate picture of Ireland's population. This information will help inform future government planning. He also stressed that all census data is strictly confidential, used solely for statistical purposes, and will not be shared with any other state agency.
Over the coming weeks, 1.5 million census forms will be delivered to every household nationwide, at an overall cost of €50 million.
Preliminary results are expected within three months, with the complete set of detailed findings to follow within a year.
To better serve Ireland's growing immigrant communities, the census form has been translated into 11 languages in addition to Irish and English.
CSO Director General Donal Garvey noted the significant challenge of processing data for a growing population. According to the CSO, the number of people who fail to return the census form is very small. However, failure to complete the census can result in a fine of up to €25,000.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 29 March 2006. The reporter is David McCullagh.
