Organization of efficient
Economic Surveys
Presenter
Philip S. Amara
Statistics Sierra Leone
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Characteristics of a and good
system of economic Surveys
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Surveys are designed based on users
needs and uses of the output
Clearly defined institutional and legal
framework which spells out the legal rights
and obligations for collecting data.
Adopts appropriate standards, concepts
and classifications that defines the
conceptual framework of the system
A good survey frame in the form of
regularly updated Business Registers
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Characteristics of a and good
system of economic Surveys
Cont.
 Adopts standard survey design
principles and practices with the
use of probability sampling as
far as possible or practical
 A good data collection
mechanism
 There is an assessment
mechanism to provide feedback
for improving the system
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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User Need Focus
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Users needs should form the basis
for survey design.
The uses and the users determine
the data that must be collected.
Different users might desire different
details of the output.
Users and uses dictate , the sources
needed ,survey design etc.
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
4
Legal and Institutional
framework
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Legislative framework which gives the NSO the right
to collect data and oblige it to use such data only for
statistical purposes.
There is central agency with responsibility for the
production and dissemination of official statistics
within the country.
NSDS which outlines the activities and output that
would be produced over a specified period is
required.
The strategic plan should provide a mechanism for
the coordination of statistical activities.
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Standard and Concepts
Sunday, July 24, 2016
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NSOs should adopt the recommended best practices on the
design and organization of Economic surveys.
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Appropriately modified Standard Recommendations to meet
peculiar national circumstances.
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The aim should be to make the data produced more
internationally comparable.
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A data quality management program should be adopted as part
of the system focus should be con consumer satisfaction)
The data produced should be assessed for accuracy, fitness for
use, relevance, timeliness, presentation, consistency and
coherence.
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Methods and procedures should be thoroughly documented...
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Survey Frame
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
A Business Register that contains all units in the
survey target population should form the basis for
a good system of economic surveys.
The Register should have all the data that is useful
for stratification and sample selection.
Industries should be properly classified and new
businesses should be included in the register in a
timely manner.
Duplicate and inactive businesses should be
eliminated in the register and all units included in
the register should have contact details.
A system of cooperation and collaboration should
be developed with administrative sources.
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Survey Design
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Standard survey design practices should be
adopted.
Use of probability methods in sample selection is
always recommended
However, a combination of methods such as quota
sampling, cutoff sampling etc. may be most
appropriate in most economic surveys.
The enterprises that are in scope for the survey
are clearly identified.
Stratification of enterprise according to their size ,
geographic and industrial classification is done to
improve sample efficiency.
Large size enterprises are usually sampled with
certainty
Small to medium scale enterprises are sampled with
probability proportional to size.
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Data Collection
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Questionnaire design deservers serious attention
The way the data collection instrument is structured
affects the response rate and the incidence of
misreporting.
The questionnaire must contain only essential
questions.
It should be attractive in layout to encourage
responds.
The purpose of the survey must be clearly stated on
the questionnaire.
It should have clear instructions on how the
respond should be recorded including appropriate
skips.
It is also good practice to test the survey
questionnaire using sound questionnaire testing
methods.
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Data Collection
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
The data collection system suitable for the economy
should be adopted.
In developing countries personal interviews may be
preferred over other methods of data collection such as
mail questionnaires, telephone interviewing etc.
Initial contact to explain the purpose of the survey are
very useful to increase respond rates.
Respond rates can also be increase by introducing good
follow up procedures and by establishing good rapport
with the respondents.
Data editing must be carried out to eliminate errors.
Efforts should be concentrated on influential observations
that could have the most significant impact.
This may involve checking large enterprise data
thoroughly.
Outliers should be properly handled when detected and
missing data should be properly imputed
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Informal Sector
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
The non-observed economy consist of
production activities that are underground,
illegal, informal sector, or undertaken by
households for their own final use.
In many developing countries, the informal
sector constitute a large proportion of the
economy.
Measuring the informal sector is therefore
important to improve on the
exhaustiveness of the national accounts
To provide data for the development of
small to medium scale enterprise
development policies.
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Informal Sector
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Measuring the informal sector
possess serious challenges due to
the following factors.
Mobilizing resources to conduct
informal sector surveys
Determining the appropriate method
of measurement-Labour force
surveys, household income and
expenditure surveys or pure informal
sector surveys
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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Informal Sector Cont.
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
The high mobility and turnover of informal
activities
Seasonal variations in business activities.
The unwillingness of operators in the
informal sector to participate in surveys
The difficulty of identifying respondents and
the lack of records on their activities.
The absence of list frames for informal
sector activities
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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End
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Sunday, July 24, 2016
Thank You
Statistics Sierra Leone, A. J. Momoh Street,
Tower Hill, Freetown, Sierra Leone
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