DoS to conduct household expenditure and income survey

AMMAN — Planning and International Cooperation Minister Imad Fakhoury on Sunday said that the Department of Statistics (DoS) has completed the necessary arrangements to start implementing the household expenditure and income survey 2017/2018 at the beginning of August.

During his meeting with the World Bank (WB) mission, which is currently providing technical support for the survey, Fakhoury said that the data collected will be confidential and protected by the Statistics Law, a Planning Ministry statement said.

In the presence of DoS Director General Qasim Zu'bi, Fakhoury noted that the survey helps the government in formulating appropriate policies to address the issues of poverty and unemployment and identify appropriate development interventions in partnership with the private sector and civil society institutions.

The minister said that reducing poverty and unemployment is one of major priorities of successive governments in Jordan. In order to assess the citizens' living standards and enable the government to develop appropriate policies, the DoS will implement a new household expenditure and income survey, and its personnel will visit sample households to gather information on living conditions and challenges, especially in the education, health, employment, services and other sectors, the statement said.

The minister called upon citizens to fully cooperate with DoS researchers and provide them with the required information to enable the government to provide them with appropriate services. He said that cooperation of residents in giving the right information will help in building a modern and prosperous Jordan under the leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah.

The WB delegation presented an assessment of the preparations by the DoS for the implementation of the census. 

The WB representatives commended the level of preparation and professionalism of the DoS and the government's efforts for continuous improvement and implementation of the best international practice. 

Fakhoury was briefed on the latest developments concerning field training, technical cadres and the survey forms that have been adopted, which include family, housing and demographic data.

As for the sample to be covered by the survey, Fakhoury said it would include Jordanians, non-Jordanians and Syrians.

The survey will be conducted on a sample of up to about 20,000 families across all governorates. 

The survey is based on the statistical framework based on the 2015 Census of Population and Housing, according to the statement.

The main objectives of the survey are to provide a comprehensive database on the levels of poverty, patterns of consumption prevailing in society, and income and expenditure averages, in addition to helping in the preparation of maps of poverty. It also provides data and indicators on education, health, infrastructure, environment, and housing characteristics.