South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Jennifer James
The South Sudan National Bureau of Statistics (SSNBS) together with partners on Monday launched the first-ever household budget survey aimed to strengthen institutional capacity and economic governance.
Augustino Ting Mayai, Director General of SSNBS said that the household budget survey (HBS) is expected to generate on various economic sectors particularly on national production across the 10 States and three administrative areas of South Sudan.
“One of the challenges underscored here that South Sudan faces, is the absence of reliable more recent empirical data on a variety of sectors and this hinders formulation of policies that are supposed to be impactful across the board,” said Mayai during the launching ceremony in Juba.
The last national representative household budget survey was conducted in 2009, prior to the country winning independence from Sudan in 2011.
Mayai noted that the existing statistical data was provided by the World Bank and other agencies through high frequency surveys conducted only in 7 States and three administrative areas.
“This is the prevailing gap that prevents informed policy positions of the government and activities. Therefore, it is essential to fill this gap and to fill this gap the launch of the house budget survey and subsequent research activities scheduled for it are dedicated to strengthening the statistical system for improved statistical capacity of the country and governance,” he said.
Mohamed Abchir, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Resident Representative in South Sudan, said the lack of reliable statistical data remains a significant hurdle in the country’s policy making processes.
He emphasized the need for quality statistical data to inform government planning, tracking and delivering of priorities outlined in the revitalized national development strategy and other strategic frameworks.
Abchir noted that the national household budget survey is a flagship initiative under the institutional support project for strengthening economic governance in South Sudan financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB).
“The project focuses on three core output: The first one is strengthening data and statistical system, enhancing parliamentary oversight capacity and institutionalizing public investment programs,” he disclosed.
The data generated from this survey will be critical in compiling statistics such as the consumer price index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and other social-economic indicators.
Themba Bhebhe, country manager of the AfDB in South Sudan, said the household budget survey funded to a tune of 10 million U.S dollars was designed to support ongoing public finance management reforms, boost budget framework and efficiency as a way of reducing economic and political fragility in South Sudan.
“The support includes technical assistance in providing strengthening capacity to generate and disseminate innovative knowledge that will guide policy, strategy and development,” said Bhebhe.
