Population microdata are often organized into households, but taking fulladvantage of the hierarchical structure of the data requires identifying the specificfamily interrelationships among household members. Household relationships areexpressed relative to a single reference person and are often ambiguous forpersons outside the nuclear family. The International Integrated Public UseMicrodata Series (IPUMS-International) has developed consistent "pointer"variables for 115 census samples, identifying each person's mother, father andspouse. The database, with over 279 million person records, is freely availablefor downloading by researchers. Some countries collected pointer information asactual census questions, and the IPUMS pointers agree with these data 98% of thetime. Nevertheless, some household situations are more problematic than others,and there is variation in the source materials across countries. Although imperfect,by using these common tools researchers remove the possibility that differingresults across studies are an artifact of different linking procedures.

Integrated census microdata constitute a new resource for social science research and policy making. The IPUMS-International project (www.ipums.org/international) is a global initiative in cooperation with national statistical authorities world-wide to anonymize, integrate and disseminate samples of census microdata. Extracts adapted to the specific research needs of each user are distributed as ASCII textfiles along with the corresponding metadata without charge via the Internet. Researchers analyze the data using their own software and hardware. This paper offers a brief over-view of the project and invites official statistical agencies in Africa to obtain additional information about participating in the IPUMS initiative by emailing the principal author of this paper. To illustrate one possible application for evidence-based policy making with respect to the Millennium Development Goals, microdata from the 2000 census of Mexico are used to measure progress toward the attainment of universal primary education and the elimination of gender inequities in access to primary education.

Thanks to the pioneering efforts of Dr. Gustavo Cabrera and other leading demographers, Latin America contains a vast archive for census microdata, the majority of which, however, are inaccessible to researchers.Throughout his academic and scientific career, Professor Cabrera was constantly concerned with information sources. The Integrated Public Use of Microdata Series for Latin America (IPUMS-AL) has embarked on the difficult task of integrating the census microdata from this region by making intensive and extensive use of new technologies, but above all, by infusing them with the determination with which Latin American institutions and eminent demographers have sought to improve the quality and ensure the preservation of these data, which undoubtedly constitute one of Latin America's statistical treasures.The IPUMS-Latin American project has the financial basis required to incorporate these microdata into a single data base that will be used for academic research and be accessible via the Internet. The census microdata of 1960, 1970, 1990 and 2000 on Mexico have already been integrated (www.ipums.org/international) as a result of the collective work undertaken by INEGI, a founding member of the project, leading Mexican demographers, and the University of Minnesota Population Center.

Census microdata are an invaluable resource for social science and policy research. Until recently National Statistical Institutes permitted little access to these data. This paper reports on users and uses of the IPUMS-International database (www.ipums.org/international). The project is a global collaboratory to anonymize, harmonize and provide access on a restricted basis to integrated microdata extracts of census samples. Custom-tailored extracts and documentation are delivered, at no charge via the Internet, but access is restricted to bona fide scientists with demonstrated research needs who agree to abide by the conditions of use license. This paper summarizes information on the users and uses of the database during the first 33 months of operation.

Thanks to cooperative undertakings with national statistical agencies world-wide and to sustained funding by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health of the United States, over the next five years the University of Minnesota Population Center is extending the IPUMS-International project to 44 countries, including at least 7 Commonwealth nations. Presently, 28 anonymized, integrated census microdata samples for 8 countries, totaling more than 122 million unit records, are available at no cost to accredited researchers on a restricted-access basis from https://www.ipums.org/international. This paper briefly summarizes the confidentiality protocols, harmonization methodology, and uses of the database over the first 33 months of operation. Commonwealth producers and users of census microdata are invited to contribute to and benefit from this global initiative.

Panelists will provide an overview and introduction to using the Integrated Public Use Microdata Samples Series database (IPUMS). The IPUMS is the world's largest collection of publicly available, individual-level census microdata, and researchers can access the data at no cost. The IPUMS-USA data files include 150 years of harmonized U.S. Census data. There are also parallel web sites providing integrated international census data (IPUMS-International) and integrated data from the March Current Population Survey (IPUMS-CPS). The session will highlight the U.S. census data, but questions on all of the different series are welcome. In addition to demonstrating the interface, panelists will discuss the strengths and limitations of both the U.S. and international census data series. Topics will include newly available samples, common user problems and questions, and plans for future improvements. Handouts will be provided, and discussion from new and established IPUMS data users is invited.

Panelists will provide an overview and introduction to using the Integrated Public Use Microdata Samples Series database (IPUMS). The IPUMS-USA data files include 150 years of harmonized U.S. Census data, and a parallel international web site provides integrated data from seven countries. The session will focus on the U.S. data. In addition to demonstrating the interface, panelists will discuss the strengths and limitations of the data series, new 2000 variables, common user problems and questions, and plans for future improvements. Handouts will be provided, and discussion from new and established IPUMS data users is invited.

Integrated Public Use Microdata Series-International (IPUMS-International) is an effort to inventory, preserve, harmonize, and disseminate census microdata from around the world. IPUMS-International aims to convert census data from five continents into a uniformly coded and fully documented data series. Nearly all countries included in the data series contribute data from multiple census years. The project uses the same principles and methods that underlie the successful IPUMS-USA model. The data are distributed free of charge via a Web-based data extraction system. Use of the data is restricted to scholarly and educational purposes. The project is conceived as part of a larger enterprise to make the world's microdata available to researchers, encouraging cross-national research with a temporal dimension.

Census microdata are an invaluable resource for social science and policy research. Until recently National Statistical Institutes (NSI) permitted little use of these data. This paper describes the IPUMS-International project (www.ipums.org/international), a global collaboratory of NSIs to anonymize, harmonize and provide access on a restricted basis to extracts of integrated census microdata samples. Access is limited to bona fide scientists with demonstrated research need who agree to abide by the conditions of use license. Custom-tailored extracts are delivered, at no charge via the Internet. At present forty official census agencies have formally ratified the IPUMS-International protocols: Argentina, Austria, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Israel, Kenya, Madagascar, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Palestinian Authority, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Tajikistan, the United States, Turkmenistan, United Kingdom ,Venezuela, and Vietnam. National Statistical Institutes interested in additional information about the initiative are invited to contact Dr. Robert McCaa (rmccaa@umn.edu).

Abstract. This paper describes a proposal for the Asia and Pacific Region to develop a restricted access web-site providing anonymized, integrated census microdata for social science and policy research. With funding by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health we propose to build on the successful IPUMS-International protocols www.ipums.org/international). This initiative is a global collaboratory in partnership with the Official Statistical Authority (OSA) in each member-state. Two region-wide efforts, one for Europe and the other for the Americas, are now underway with a total of 33 countries participating. In the Asia region, integrated census microdata for Vietnam first became available in May 2002 and China in 2003. Access to integrated microdata is restricted to bona fide university scientists with demonstrated research need who agree to abide by the conditions of use license. Custom-tailored extracts are delivered, at no charge via the Internet. At present more than forty official census agencies have formally ratified the IPUMS-International protocols. Statistical Agencies of the Asia and Pacific Area interested in joining a region-wide initiative are invited to contact Dr. Robert McCaa (rmccaa@umn.edu).

The development of IPUMS-International involves harmonizing data from different national statistical offices created over several decades. The original samples vary in quality and have different data formats and variable coding schemes. The authors describe the methods developed to deal with the challenges posed by such diversity and unevenness. The first stage of harmonization involves standardizing the data formats and correcting errors. Diagnostic routines analyze each data set, and custom computer programs modify the different data structures into a single standard format. The second stage of the work centers on harmonizing the codes for all variables shared across data sets, including the compilation and integration of all the relevant documentation.