RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazil’s government statistics agency IBGE said on Tuesday it has postponed its 2020 census by one year on the grounds the coronavirus outbreak could risk the health of census-takers and the households they survey.

Around 180,000 census-takers were due to visit 71 million households across Brazil this year, with training courses due to begin in April, the IBGE said. The census was expected to cost 2.3 billion reais ($458.99 million). That money will now be reallocated to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

The health ministry will then reallocate the same amount in next year’s budget in order to carry out the census in 2021, it said.