Social Statistics in Kenya

Abstract

Summary The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in Kenya, has in the past two years devoted considerable resources to the development of Social Statistics. This effort has been directed towards enhancing the CBS's capacity to extend its coverage of Social Statistics derived both from administrative records and through direct surveys. This paper details the work which the CBS has done in respect of the latter activity. This development has taken place in context of the CBS's efforts towards establishing a permanent and viable household survey capability as a part of its National Integrated Sample Survey Programme (NISSP). A broad over-view of the infrastructure which is being developed within the framework of this programme is given below; however, in this paper, we have not discussed the concomitant development which is taking place re the utilization of administrative files for obtaining social data. The National Integrated Sample Survey Programme The CBS has established an integrated programme of field surveys to collect information on socio-economic trends. The lack of pertinent and up-to-date information on these trends is, it is felt, a constraint in enhancing still further the impact of the Government's national development programme as set out in the development plan. Indeed, such information is a very vital ingredient for the evolution and evaluation of such programmes. The CBS has established the NISSP to overcome this constraint. The contents of the NISSP itself consist of a series of sample surveys covering a wide range of subject matter on demographic, social and economic trends. The emphasis of the NISSP is on the integrated approach being adopted to undertake the surveys, the focal point of which is the multi-purpose National Sample. The 'units of enumeration' for all the sample surveys in this programme are chosen within this framework. Also, all concepts and definitions common to the various surveys have been standardized and are consistently applied in each survey. Thus although the content matter of the individual surveys differ considerably from each other, both in scope and structure, the organization of the programme ensures that interconnecting links are established between the various surveys and that each survey has an integral role to play within the context of the overall programme. This, it is hoped, is yielding information which is not only internally correct but also mutually consistent. Such information is an essential pre-requisite to undertaking an inter-disciplinary appraisal of the socio-economic trends in the country. A single multi-purpose sample is usually not more efficient (in terms of the sampling error) than specifically designed samples for individual surveys. However, given the existing resource constraint in the CBS, the other efficiencies that result from the use of its multi-purpose sample outweigh the handicap of small increases in sampling error. These other efficiencies accrue from the more optimal use of resources made possible by the simple multi-purpose national sample. It also makes possible a more effective use of the limited supply of manpower with particular savings in the manpower required to undertake the supporting cartographic work. It is expected that these efficiencies will still further lower the costs and make it possible to institute more effective survey controls. The latter will, in time, have an effect on the reduction of the magnitude of the non-sampling error.