The production of relevant, accurate and timely statistics is an ongoing and continuous process. This is so because statistics, just like anything else, is not static. The way something was a few years ago, is not how it necessarily is today. Neither will it be like that tomorrow. For example, in 1990 the population of our country stood at 1.4 million. Ten years later it rose to 1.8 million. And in the last census year the population was estimated at 2.1 million. The projection for the current year of 2016 is 2.3 million whilst by the year 2030 our population is estimated to stand at 2.9 million people. Population trends hence change.
The same is true about our economy. Before independence, in 1980 for example, our GDP at market prices stood at N$1.9 billion. At independence, in 1990, this figure rose to N$7.2 billion and ten years later, in the year 2000, our GDP stood at N$26.6 billion. A few years ago, in the year 2010, the figure rose to N$82.6 billion and by last year the GDP figures stood at N$147.3 billion. Economic trends change evidently as well.
Since nothing is static, the mandate of the Namibia Statistics Agency remains relevant as it has to ensure that the nation has relevant, accurate and timely statistics. This is done by ensuring that statistics are collected and produced continuously. Only through such continuous and ongoing surveys can we ensure that statistics remain relevant, accurate and timely. There are international guidelines and protocols which determine the interval of certain statistics collection. As Namibia is in line with the majority of those, it is therefore no wonder, and a good reason why, the NSA keeps knocking at your doors for information collection.
In 2011 we had the Namibia Population and Housing Census and thereafter ran annual Labour Force Surveys, except last year. Currently the Namibia Statistics Agency is in the process of conducting the Namibia Inter-censal Demographic and Labour Force Survey (NID & LFS). One would wonder what this is all about. Well, the NID – LFS is a combination of the Inter-censal Demographic and Labour Force Survey. The purpose of this survey is aimed at collecting information on socio-demographic characteristics of the population. The labour force survey part of this is that the two surveys are combined. Like this we cut costs and kill two birds with one stone.
The survey will take place across the entire country in all 14 regions. It will take the form of a representative sample selected from a total number of private households, meaning that not all households in Namibia will be interviewed. The survey will be conducted in two phases. The first phase consists of the listing phase where for the first two weeks enumerators will visit all households within the selected areas and ask information about the head of the household and the number of household members who have been living in those household for a specific reference period. The second phase will randomly select 20 households in each area to represent all listed households in that area. They will interview the 20 selected households for a period of two weeks.
The purpose of conducting this survey is to provide up to date information on the demographic characteristics of the population such as population distribution, birth and death rates. It will also serve as a pilot for the 2021 Population and Housing Census.
Lastly, the aim of this survey will be to provide labour statistics that can measure the employment and unemployment status in the country. The data collection for this survey will take place from the 17th October – 11 November 2016 and the entire nation is requested to assist the Namibia Statistics Agency produce relevant, accurate and timely statistics.
*Iipumbu Sakaria is Deputy Director:Strategic Communications at the NSA.