World Bank Support to Household Survey Programs Misha Belkindas 13 May 2004 ________________________________________ Presented at Forum on African Statistical DEVelopment (FASDEV) that took place May 2004 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Three Dimensions of Poverty depth of poverty Geographical distribution Changes over time

Tools for Poverty Monitoring Measuring depth of poverty and determinants –Tools: - A comprehensive household survey (there are various options – Household Budget Survey, LSMS, Integrated Household Survey, etc.) –Participative and qualitative assessments Monitoring Spatial/regional differences –Poverty maps –Tools: - Population census + Household survey Monitoring Changes over time –Tools: Administrative data/MIS; Institution-based surveys; household surveys –Monitoring leading indicators (Service Delivery) –Key requirements Simple to execute Rapid reporting Disaggregatable to low levels –Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaire (CWIQ)

The World Bank and Capacity Building in Household Surveys and Poverty Statistics Statistical capacity building in household surveys and poverty statistics are an integral part of World Bank’s development assistance for institutional and knowledge development to underpin research and policy work Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) surveys – a multi-purpose household survey – from 1985-present Social Dimensions of Adjustment (SDA) – Integrated Household Survey (HIS) and Priority Surveys (PS) – for African countries from late 80s to mid-90s Core Welfare Indicators Survey (CWIQ) – An off-the-shelf survey package with core and optional questionnaire modules for service indicator MECOVI Program as an coordinated approach to build regional and country capacity for household surveys of living conditions ___________________________________________________ MECOVI is short for “Programa para el Mejoramiento de las Encuestas y la Medición de Condiciones de Vida”, the Spanish translation for the Program for Improvement of the Surveys of Living Conditions (ISLC).

A Brief History of the Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) Surveys collecting timely, policy- relevant data at household level measure determinants of outcomes, not just levels generating data for assessing the interaction of government policies and household welfare/ behavior Originally a research program to determine the feasibility of: Phase I: Review and evaluation of household surveys and methodologies in use at the time Development of new proto-types Phase II: Implementation and analysis of first LSMS surveys in Ivory Coast, Peru Followed by surveys in a further 11 countries Phase III: present Providing support to LSMS surveys in more than 40 countries Comprehensive assessment of policy uses of the LSMS Documentation Decentralization

Evolution of the Living Standard Measurement Study Originally a research program to determine feasibility, improve methodology and data The emphasis was on research Now, moved to a decentralized model WB has no central mandate: LSMS surveys are demand driven by countries WB’s Research Group provides technical / analytical support on LSMS activities to countries’ statistical offices Funding: Started with WB Research grants, now largely funded by WB loans, other country resources, donor grants, cooperative agreements

LSMS Surveys Multi-topic household survey to collect data on wide range of factors affecting household and individual welfare Robust money-metric welfare measure Emphasis on quality control and timeliness of data Promoting linkages between users and producers Promoting open data access Capacity building for survey technique and policy analysis LSMS Survey characteristics:LSMS Program goals:

LSMS/IS Surveys Albania Armenia Azerbaijan Bolivia BiH Brazil Bulgaria China (part) Cote d’Ivoire Ecuador FRY: Kosovo Gambia Ghana Guatemala Guinea Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Russia South Africa Tajikistan Tanzania Timor Leste Tunisia Turkmenistan Uganda Viet Nam Guyana Honduras India (part) Jamaica Kazakhstan Kenya Kyrgyz Republic Madagascar Mauritania Malawi Morocco Nepal Nicaragua Niger Pakistan

Social Dimensions of Adjustment (SDA) World Bank’s response to international demands for knowledge on the human costs of a decade-long process of adjustments in 1980s Generous donor support to fund the work program for the Sub-Saharan Africa from late 80s to mid-90s Innovative approaches with Integrated Household Survey every 4-5 years, and Priority Survey in intervening years – falling short at the execution stage Lessons learned: –Distance between planning and implementation –Supply-driven process with little country input –Limited absorptive capacity –Scale up problem –> magnitude of the project should have required closer coordination and more technical support to surmount low country capacity –Resources spread too thin across many projects in many countries –> too much money to chase too many talents with problematic quality control –Narrow objectives of filling data gaps than building lasting country capacity –> sustainability was not achieved –Some capacity built and some data gaps filled –> laid a foundation for World Bank’s current technical assistance program for the Africa region

The CWIQ is a household survey It is used to monitor outcomes of development actions, (such as HIPC/PRSPs) …. …..through the use of leading indicators, such as access, use and satisfaction

How does the CWIQ work? Large sample Short questionnaire Rigorous control of data quality Quick data entry & validation Simple reporting Fixed core, flexible modules An off-the-shelf survey package

MECOVI Program in Latin America A Coordinated Approach – A Regional Program of Technical Assistance for Capacity Building to Improve Household Surveys to Measure Living Conditions and Poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean Launched in 1996 jointly by IDB, World Bank and UN-ECLAC –Subsequently supported by other donors: UNDP, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, US, Japan, Soros Foundation, etc. With a Shared Vision for Change in Doing Business in Household Surveys –A multi-year program instead of a one-shot project with a view to building sustainable capacity –Breaking the vicious circle with intervention at various entry points –Program design built on the profile of existing country capacity and statistical system –Program sponsors offer resources according to respective strengths and comparative advantages –Allocation of generous amount of resources for coordination and supervision of program activities –All to ensure significant improvement of statistical capacity for producing and analyzing household survey and poverty data

MECOVI Program: Objectives and Organization Program Objectives –Improve quality, relevance and timeliness of household survey and poverty data –Promote wide use of the improved data for research and policy analysis –Promote open accessibility to the household survey and poverty data –Improve survey methodologies and poverty analysis Organization: a clear mechanism for governance, counsel, and inter-institutional coordination –Steering Committee (made up of IDB VP, World Bank LAC VP, UN- ECLAC Executive Secretary) decides and guides on key matters of policy, planning and resource mobilization. –Advisory Board provides input to technical issues –Program Coordinators handle day-to-day operational matters, including program coordination, project development, preparation and implementation, and fielding joint missions to supervise on-going operations

MECOVI Program: Results by Component As of May 2004, a national MECOVI program of technical assistance operation were rolled out in 10 countries: 12 regional seminars/workshops on survey methodologies & poverty measurement  Promotion of good practices in definitions, measurement, data collection and analysis 11 regional training courses  270 participants from 20 countries Data Dissemination: LAC regional data bank made up of micro- data sets from 300+ household surveys  key input to country and regional reports ArgentinaBolivia Dominican Rep.Ecuador El SalvadorGuatemala HondurasNicaragua ParaguayPeru

MECOVI Program: Some Success Factors Relatively favorable environments to develop a joint regional initiative  common language and some existing infrastructure Extensive consultation helps create country stakeholder buy-in and country ownership  NSOs in the driver seats Institutional commitment of the NSOs creates a virtuous circle of: –Better data  Better publicity  Increased demand  Increased allocation of resources  Better data Fundamental changes in the concept of key deliverables: –Relevant and high-quality data timely available to a wide group of users –Emphasis on building capacity than just perfecting survey instruments alone Producer-user interaction increases long-term viability of the program –> via constitution of an inter-institutional committee Promote “Culture of Statistics” and democratization of statistical information –> open data access policy as pre-conditions for participation in MECOVI program

Lessons of MECOVI Program for International Cooperation on Statistical Capacity Building Success of MECOVI exposed weaknesses of other statistical activities  an island of efficiency in a sea of inefficiency MECOVI-like framework to serve as a platform of international technical cooperation to mobilize resources to scale up joint operation to build statistical capacity  substantial up-front investment needed to set up the structure A call for scaling up MECOVI mandates to: –Replicate in other regions (SPARC, PADI, etc.) –Formulate and implement a comprehensive strategy to develop statistical capacity (a la Marrakech Plan) –Increase coordination and information sharing with setting up of International Household Network