International survey programs

1-2-3 Survey
Developed by DIAL (France), the 1-2-3 Survey collects data on labor and socio-economic characteristics of households (Phase 1), informal sector (Phase 2), and household expenditure (Phase 3).

Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaires (CWIQ)
Developed jointly by the World Bank with UNDP and UNICEF, the Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaire (CWIQ) is designed to monitor social indicators in Africa on an annual basis. The CWIQ shows who is, and who is not, benefiting from actions designed to improve social and economic conditions. The CWIQ collects (i) indicators of household well-being; and, (ii) indicators of access, usage and satisfaction with community and other basic services.

The CWIQ provides rapid monitoring of key indicators for different population subgroups, including by wealth quintile (wealth being estimated using poverty predictors). Rapid implementation is ensured by short questionnaires applied in a single short survey. The structure of the questionnaire is the arrangement and sequencing of multiple choice questions for easy and rapid data collections. The processing strategy uses scanning technology, and data entry is done through scanning. One critical benefit and objective of the CWIQ is the interaction of survey statisticians and the data processor. Another important feature of CWIQ is the use of large sample within the consideration of feasibility and resource availability. Even though useful in all developing countries, the CWIQ has been applied in Africa only.

Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS)
Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) are nationally representative household surveys with large sample sizes (usually between 5,000 and 30,000 households). DHS surveys provide data for a wide range of monitoring and impact evaluation indicators in the areas of population, health, and nutrition. Typically, DHS surveys are conducted every 5 years, to allow comparisons over time.

The basic approach of the DHS program is to collect and make available data that are comparable across countries. To achieve this, DHS works to ensure that proper guidance is in place, budgets and schedules are managed, and standard procedures are followed. DHS Surveys are normally conducted in four phases over a period of 18-20 months. To collect data that are comparable across countries, standard model questionnaires have been developed, along with a written description of why certain questions or sections have been included. The DHS Surveys List provides a listing of all previous and current DHS Surveys. For all surveys listed, a Survey Summary is available which provides an overview of the survey as well as a listing of the publications and datasets available for the survey.

Integrated Survey (IS)
The Integrated Survey was designed in the early 1990s by the World Bank, Africa region, as a data collection instrument to provide complete and integrated datasets needed to better understand the mechanisms of the structural adjustment process at the household level. The focus of this survey is on diagnosis - explaining how and why households respond to the macroeconomic environment.
The enumeration for the Integrated Survey is normally spread over a full year. This is necessary in view of the length of the questionnaire and in order to capture seasonality. The Integrated Survey was expected to be carried out as the foundation element of a country's
continuing survey program using national statistical resources.

Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS)
The LSMS was designed as a multi-faceted program to:

1. improve the quality of household survey data;
2. increase the capacity of statistical institutes to perform household surveys;
3. improve the ability of statistical institutes to analyze household survey data for policy needs; and
4. provide policy makers with data that can be used to understand the determinants of observed social and economic outcomes.

   

   Phase I of the study was a five-year comprehensive review of existing household surveys, and extensive consultations with researchers and policymakers to determine the types of data needed.

   In Phase II, LSMS surveys became increasingly customized to fit specific country circumstances, including policy issues, social and economic characteristics, and local household survey traditions. The result of Phase II was to develop improved methodology for:

   1. questionnaire design;
   2. field work;
   3. data entry and processing; and
   4. analysis.

   Phase III of the LSMS has concentrated on:

   1. disseminating methodological tools for implementing and analyzing household surveys; and
   2. archiving, documenting, and distributing information on the survey data that have been collected through the study.

   Phase IV will focus on how to continue to improve the collection. It will also create new tools and update existing ones to expand the dissemination of literature, knowledge and results in the area of survey methodology in developing countries. Over 60 LSMS surveys have been carried out in over 40 countries. Detailed information on the LSMS methodology is available in a 3-volume publication on Designing Household Survey Questionnaires for Developing Countries. Lessons from 15 years of the Living Standards Measurement Study (World Bank, 2000).

   Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS)
   The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) is a household survey program developed by UNICEF to assist countries in filling data gaps for monitoring the situation of children and women. It is capable of producing statistically sound, internationally comparable estimates of these indicators.

   The MICS was originally developed in response to the World Summit for Children to measure progress towards an internationally agreed set of mid-decade goals. The first round of MICS was conducted around 1995 in more than 60 countries. The current round (MICS4) is focused on providing a monitoring tool for the World Fit for Children, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), as well as for other major international commitments such as the UNGASS on HIV/AIDS and the Abuja targets for malaria. 21 of the 48 MDG indicators can be collected in the current round of MICS, offering the largest single source of data for MDG monitoring. The current plans call for surveys to be executed in more than 50 countries. The survey questionnaires are modular tools that can be customized to the needs of a country. They consist of 3 questionnaires: a household questionnaire, a questionnaire for women aged 15-49, and a questionnaire for children under the age of 5 (addressed to the mother or primary caretaker of the child).

   The Priority Survey (PS)
   The Priority Survey was designed in the early 1990s by the World Bank Africa region as a means of rapid collection of priority information to identify target groups during the process of structural adjustment. The PS complements the Integrated Survey (see above). It is a survey designed to provide information on what is occurring without necessarily concerning itself with why. When repeated in subsequent years, the Priority Survey takes on a monitoring role and is used to measure changes in key indicators over time.

   A relatively large sample is desirable to enable presentation of these results at a relatively disaggregated level. As a rapid identification device the Priority Survey should contain certain key features.

   • First, the questionnaire needs to be of strictly limited length. Essentially the survey should be concerned with the collection of information to construct key socio-economic indicators.
   • Secondly, the use of shorter questionnaires allows for an expansion of the sample size. Not only can the sample be made larger in absolute terms, but the design can also be made more efficient by reducing the adverse effects of clustering through an increase in the number of clusters.
   • Thirdly, for the Priority Survey to act as an effective monitoring device it must not only be concerned with cross-sectional analysis but also with the detection of trends.

   World Health Surveys (WHS)
   The World Health Organization (WHO) has developed and implemented a Survey Program and a World Health Survey to compile comprehensive baseline information on the health of populations and on the outcomes associated with the investment in health systems; baseline evidence on the way health systems are currently functioning; and, ability to monitor inputs, functions, and outcomes.

   The World Health Survey offers a menu of modules for various components. Each country can choose from these modules or may add additional ones. The modules cover the following:

   • Health states of populations.
   • Risk factors (e.g. tobacco, alcohol, pollution) and their association with health states.
   • Responsiveness of health systems.
   • Coverage, access and utilization of key health services (e.g. immunization, treatment of childhood illness, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS).
   • Health care expenditures.

   Over 70 countries participated in the following WHO regions: Africa, Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, region of the Americas, South East Asia and Western Pacific.