The count will be done over seven days in the evenings
The hashtag #census2019 is trending in Kenya with most tweeps concerned by the interior minister's decision to shut down bars and other entertainment venues nationwide over the weekend.
No thank you sir! That is the overwhelming response from Kenyans on social media.
Earlier in the week it was only one county, Machakos, that had issued the directive to help census officials - but Interior Minister Fred Matiang'i says it now applies to all of the nation's 47 counties.
Despite a backlash, Mr Matiang'i said on Thursday that the order remained in place and that all bars must shut at 17:00 local time on Saturday and Sunday.
This is because it will make life easier for census officials who are doing the count in the evenings - and it is felt that sober citizens will be more co-operative.
However, football fans are most aggrieved as they will not be able to go to venues that screen live football from the English Premier League.
One key match starts at 19:30 local time on Saturday between Arsenal and Liverpool.
One tweeter asked for a special dispensation for the match or suggested the government pay for Premier League games to be aired on local channels.
View content: https://twitter.com/eugene_marira/status/1164535905702633472
Another disgruntled fan said Kenyans' only option would be to go to watch the match in neighbouring countries like Uganda:
View content: https://twitter.com/Mr_Shabbs/status/1164413913351503872
Alcohol was uppermost in the mind of this tweeter, with his meme of a water dispenser, commonly used in many homes in Kenya, filled with beer:
View content: https://twitter.com/kariti_wallace/status/1164776094056116224
Likewise one meme suggested that if Kenyans couldn't go to a bar, they should make a bar at home:
View content: https://twitter.com/Chepkut_William/status/1164206481211834368