STA 405 Official Statistics

B.Sc Four Year

Unit 1: Basic introduction to
official statistics
Narayan Thapa
1
 1.1 Basic introduction to official statistics

 Official statistics are the statistics published by government agencies or

other public bodies such as international organizations
 They provide the quantitative or qualitative information on all major areas
of citizens lives such as economic and social development, living conditions,
health, education and the environment
 Official statistics are generally collected through government
census/surveys, registers and administrative record keeping

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 Importance of official statistics
 Official statistics are used by policy makers, the press and the general
public to assess the government performance
 They are used for a great many different purposes, by a great variety of
users
 They are the tools used in decision making which are used to reduce
the uncertainty of the future
 They help decision maker in addressing the future, to help in making
decision aimed at changing the trend, and for estimations and
projections etc.
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 The overall users of official statistics are listed in the following:
 Policy and decision makers in government ministries and agencies,
and semi government bodies
 Politicians (such as member of parliament)
 Local authorities in provinces, districts etc.
 Non government organizations
 Researchers and academicians
 Private sector operators (business enterprises, associations, trade
unions etc)
 International organizations, the media, public

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 United Nations Fundamental Principles of
Official Statistics(FPOS)
 The statistical system of a country is guided by the Fundamental
Principles of Official Statistics(FPOS),which is the pillar of the Global
Statistical System
 It was adopted by the UN Statistical Commission in 1994
 They have become an integral part and common reference in the
statistical systems in global and national level
 The ten principles are discussed below:

5
 Principle 1-Relevance,impartiality and equal access
 Principle 2-Professional standards, professional ethics and scientific
principles
 Principle 3-Accountability and transparency
 Principle 4-Prevention of misuse
 Principle 5-Sources of official statistics
 Principle 6-Confidentiality
 Principle 7-Legislation
 Principle 8-National coordination
 Principle 9-Use of international standards
 Principle 10-International cooperation
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 Principle 1-Relevance,impartiality and equal
access
 Official statistics provide an indispensable element in the information
system of a democratic society, serving government, the economy and
the public with data about the economic,demography,social and
environment situation
 To this end, official statistics that meet the test of practical utility are
to be complied and made available on an impartial basis by official
statistical agencies to honor citizens entitlement to public information

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Principle 2-Professional standards, professional
ethics and scientific principles
 To retain trust in official statistics, the statistical agencies need to
decide according to strictly professional considerations, including
scientific principles and professional ethics, on the methods and
procedure for the collection, processing,storge and presentation of
statistical data

8
 Principle 3-Accountability and transparency
 To facilate a correct interpretation of the data, the statistical agencies
are to present information according to scientific standards on the
sources, methods and procedures of the statistics

9
 Principle 4-Prevention of misuse
 The statistical agencies are entitled to comment on erroneous
interpretation of the data and misuse of statistics
 Statistics can be used and interpreted in many different ways, it is
sometime misused
 It is important to maintain trust in, and the credibility of ,official
statistics
 Hence, statistical agencies should draw attention to obvious public
incorrect use or interpretation

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 Principle 5-Sources of official statistics
 Data for statistical purposes may be drawn from different types of
sources, they may be statistical surveys or administrative records
 Statistical agencies are to choose the source with regard to quality,
timeliness, costs and the burden on respondents

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 Principle 6-Confidentiality
 Data for statistical purposes may be drawn from different types of
sources, they may be statistical surveys or administrative records
 Statistical agencies are to choose the source with regard to quality,
timeliness, costs and the burden on respondents

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 Principle 7-Legislation
 The laws, regulations and measures under which the statistical
systems operate are to be made public
 It refers to the need for preparing corresponding legal regulations for
statistics

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 Principle 8-National coordination
 Coordination among the statistical agencies within countries is
essential to achieve consistency and efficiency in the statistical system
 Coordination, here, refers to a situation where statistical agencies
within a country can work together in an efficient and organized way
to strengthen the national statistical system
 Coordination also helps to reduce the costs of data collection and to
reduce burden

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 Principle 9-Use of international standards
 The use by statistical agencies in each country of international concepts,
classifications and methods promotes the consistency and efficiency of statistical
systems at all official levels
 It recommends the use of international standards and best practices by all
statistical agencies
 The Central Bureau of Statistics , Nepal has been following most of the
international concepts,definations and classifications and practices for
collection, processing, storage and presentation of statistical data
 Statistical concepts,definations and classifications are recommended by the UN
agencies are the main international standards and best practices followed in
Nepal
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 Principle 10-International cooperation
 Bilateral and multilateral cooperation in statistics contributes to the
improvement of systems of official statistics in all countries
 Often the UN is involved in multilateral cooperation, the principle
states that international cooperation in statistics contributes to the
improvement of systems of official statistics in all countries

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 Concept of evidence based policy
 Evidence-based policy (EBP) is an idea in public policy proposing
that policy decisions should be based on, or informed by, rigorously
established objective evidence
 Public policy is defined as a goal oriented course of action which deal
with public problems
 It is regarded as a government tool to solve social, economic and
environmental problems
 It is the approach which helps people make well informed decisions
about policies, programs and projects by putting the best available
evidence at the heart of policy development and implementation 17
 Cont…
 Decision makers are always confronted with one or more kinds of
uncertainties
 From experience they know that uncertainty is an unavoidable fact of
life
 They need information(some kind of evidence) to reduce the amount
of uncertainty in their decision making process
 The quality,accuracy,reliability and integrity of data and statistics are
essential and useful for evidence based decision making

181
Opportunity and challenges of official statistics
 Official statistics are essential inputs to the economic and social
development of any country
 The opportunities and challenges of official statistics are discussed
below

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 Opportunities
 Authoritative(decision making)
 Independent, objective and transparent(trust)
 Highest professional standards and ethics(confidentiality)
 Fitness for purpose (user oriented quality)
 Universal(equal access)
 Flexible and resilient (reliable)
 Efficient and effective (coordinated)

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 Challenges of official statistics
 Trust
 Privacy
 Social statistics
 Economic statistics and globalization
 Environmental statistics

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 Open data access
 Open Data is research data that is freely available on the internet
permitting any user to download, copy, analyze, re-process, pass to
software or use for any other purpose without financial, legal, or
technical barriers
 Open data in this sense is generally understood to mean data that are
made available to the public free of charge, without registration or
restrictive licenses, for any purpose whatsoever (including commercial
purposes), in electronic, machine-readable formats that are easy to
find, download and use
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 Cont…
 Open data platforms are becoming popular in recent years which are
defined by their free use
 Open data are beneficial in many ways to government, business and
civil society as well
 European Data Portal has defined open data as: data that anyone can
access, use and share
 Governments, business and individuals can use open data to bring
about social, economic and environment benefits

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 Cont…
 "Open data handbook" has defined open data as, "data that can be
freely used, re-used and redistributed by anyone - subject only, at
most, to the requirement to attribute and share alike
 The handbook has outlined three characteristics of open data:
availability and access; re-use and redistribution; and universal
participation
 Data should be available at a reasonable cost in a convenient
and modifiable form preferably over the internet

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 Cont…
 Open data must be available under terms that permit its re-use,
redistribution and intermixing with other data sets
 They should be available without any discrimination against fields of
endeavour or against persons or groups

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 Benefits of open data
 Open data facilitates greater information sharing within government
and with external stakeholders, increases transparency,
accountability, and citizen participation; provides public insights into a
country progress in a way that allows a variety of stakeholders to
contribute data, expertise, and resources

26
 Cont…
 Transparency : Open Data supports public oversight of governments
and helps reduce corruption by enabling greater transparency
 Public Service Improvement
 Innovation and Economic Value
 Efficiency

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Opportunity and challenges of open data access
for official statistics
Opportunities:
 Increased uses of data
 Reduced cost of data dissemination
 Raising profile and influence
 Improving data quality

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 Cont…
Challenges:
 Privacy and confidentiality
 Legal, licensing and policy issues
 Implementation and resources

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 Open Data Initiatives in Nepal
 Open data concept started in the early 2000s as an initiative aimed at
improving government transparency
 Nepal is striving for the emerging trend which have been some
positive moves towards the open data access movement
 Creation of an information commission is an example "The National
Information Commission (NIC) was established in A. D. 2008”
 The Central Bureau of Statistics, being the nodal agency in the
national statistical system, has become the "hub" of the official
statistics as well as the government open data system
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 Cont…
 There are open data forums who are working to improve the condition
of open data access in Nepal
 Open Data Nepal website (http://opendatanepal.com/organization)
has listed the government organizations and agencies with the
number of open data sets available

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 Cont…
 Central Bureau of Statistics (18 datasets),
 Civil Aviation Authority (3 datasets)
 Department of Environment (1 dataset),
 Department of Foreign Employment (2 data sets),
 Department of Health Services (15 datasets)
 Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (15 data sets),
 Department of Information Technology (1 dataset),
 Department of Industry (10 datasets)
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 Department of Roads (12 data sets),
 Department of Water Supply and Sewerage (1 dataset)
 Department of Water Supply and Sewerage (1 dataset)
 Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (4 data sets),
 Election Commission Nepal (2 datasets),
 Financial Comptroller General Office (1 dataset)
 Inland Revenue Department (2 dataset),
 Ministry of Agricultural Development (8 datasets)
 Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (8 datasets),
 Ministry of Education (22 datasets)
 Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development (2 datasets)
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 Sample Questions
1) Define "Official Statistics". Describe the importance of official
statistics for policy formulation
2) State and explain Principle 6 of the Fundamental Principles of Official
Statistics
3) What do you mean by evidence-based policy formulation? Describe
its importance in decision making
4) Define the concept of Open Data and Open Data Access system. What
are the benefits of the Open Data Access system?

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 1.2 Statistical system of Nepal
 The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) is the central statistical authority for
the government and provider of statistical services to the central as well as
the state-governments
 However, the CBS has no mandate and no resources to meet the needs of
all users
 Some line ministries and their agencies (and some in private sector also)
collect statistics
 Some examples are: the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Health, the
Ministry of Finance, the Nepal Rastra Bank, the Trade and Export
Promotion Centre, etc.
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 Cont…
 The CBS is legally authorized to ensure co-ordination of the statistical
operations of other agencies
 In summary: A national statistical system is defined by a legal
framework, infrastructure and institutional arrangement for
collection, management, dissemination and utilization of official
statistics in a country

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 Legal Framework
 An appropriate and up to date legislation is important in "providing
the underpinning for what the statistical agencies can and cannot do
and giving them the necessary authority, legitimacy and
credibility"(Khawaja, S. & Morrison 2002 as cited in Edmunds, 2005,
para. 7)
 Legal frameworks comprise a set of documents that include the
constitution, legislation, regulations in a country
 Legal contracts also form a part of the legal framework
 Legislation is a law or act, or a set of laws
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 Cont…
 Regulations contain implementing rules created by government t
legislation practical
 Contracts are written official agreements between two or more
parties
 A legal framework can possibly comprise the statistical law as well as
other influencing factors in the jurisdiction of the country ,including
conventions and or social norms
 The framework is necessary for laying own duties and responsibilities
of the data collectors and the obligations and rights of the
respondents 38
 Cont…
 The following are the key elements of statistical legislation
 Functions of statistical system
 Power to collect statistical information
 Professional independence of statistical system
 Confidentiality of data
 Coordination in statistical organization

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 Statistical Legislations in Nepal
 Statistics Act 2015 (AD 1958) is a vintage statistical act of Nepal
 This act was created "to facilitate the collection of statistics" in Nepal
 The act was promulgated because the government for its business
required "realistic basis and, to acquire such basis, it was expedient to
make provision to facilitate the collection of statistics and to establish a
Central Bureau for collection, consolidation, publication and analysis of
statistics
 The act has envisaged the national statistical system as a centralized
one
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 Cont…
 Statistics Regulation, 2041 (AD 1984), created under the provision laid
down in the Statistics Act 2015 (1958), contains rules and regulations
governing the statistical activities of the Central Bureau of Statistics
(CBS)
 Besides, Guidelines of the Central Organization, 2054 (1997) has
specified the objectives and the main functions of the bureau
 The overall management and operation of the activities in the bureau
are based on the Civil Service Act, 1993 AD and Civil Service
Regulation, 1993 AD
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 Cont…
 Constitution of Nepal 2072 (AD 2015) also deserves consideration
 The Constitution has made it mandatory to conduct a national
population census in the country (Article 84, 259, 281, and several
other Articles)

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 Role of CBS and other institutions
 As mentioned earlier, the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in Nepal
was established by virtue of the Statistics Act 1958
 The Bureau had replaced the then existing Department of Statistics
 In the beginning, the CBS was administratively under the Ministry of
Finance
 During a short period of time, the Bureau came under the Ministry of
Finance and economic Affairs, then under the Ministry of Economic
Affairs, and then under the Ministry of Planning
 Finally it came under the National Planning Commission (NPC)
Secretariat and is under the same secretariat to date. 43
 The CBS is the national statistical agency of Nepal, providing official
statistics on a wide range of economic, social and environmental
matters of importance to the country
 The role of CBS and other institutions are discussed below

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1. To produce and provide reliable socioeconomic data to the
government for plan and policy making
2. To maintain coordination among all the governmental and non-
governmental organization that conduct economic and social data
collection, processing, analysis, and publication activities
3. To provide appropriate condition for the development of standardized
Statistical System in Nepal
4. To provide training and develop statistical manpower in the country

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 Statistical Plans and Policies of Nepal
 Official statistics contribute to evidence based development planning
 Good, reliable statistics are essential for good, efficient and effective
planning
 Good, reliable statistics are product of a strong, sustainable national
statistical system
 Nepal's first five-year plan was introduced in AD 1956
 Currently, Nepal is on its 14th development Plan

46
 Cont…
 All of these plans formulated so far have highlighted the importance
of statistics
 During a period of more than 60 years, there has been some
development in the field of the national statistical system of Nepal
 The pace of development, however, has been sluggish and not up to
the level of expectation
 The objectives set out in the successive plans have not been fully
achieved

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 Relationship between the national statistical
system and the international statistical system
 Relationship between the national statistical system and the
international statistical system can be described in terms of the role of
development partners in Nepal, particularly in statistics
 Over the years, the cooperation between the national statistical
system and the development partners has accelerated
 For example, the CBS has received technical assistances in various
forms from the development partners

48
 Cont…
 The major technical assistance received through development
partners over the last ten years includes the following: UNDP, UNFPA,
UNICEF, UN Women, FAO, UNIDO, DfID, WB, DANIDA, ADB, USAID, and
JAICA
 In some cases, assistance has been provided at the request of the
government
 In some other instances, development partners have shown interest
and taken initiative to assist statistical development projects

49
 Cont…
 Assistance is received in several forms: in kind, expert services, and
direct payments, etc.
 Capacity building activities including training, technical assistance and
even sponsorship of surveys have certainly helped the government in
improving its functioning

50
 Major Sources of Official Statistics
 Data for statistical purposes may be drawn from all types of sources,
be they statistical surveys or administrative records
 Statistical agencies are to choose the source with regard to quality,
timeliness, costs and the burden on respondents
 Censuses and surveys are the conventional sources of official statistics
of a country
 Administrative data are collected primarily for non-statistical
purposes and adapted for producing official statistics

51
 Cont…
 Administrative data are collected primarily for non-statistical purposes
and adapted for producing official statistics
 Data sources are mentioned in different ways in the texts on "sources
of official statistics“
 For example, the sources are broadly divided into two: primary and
secondary sources
 Primary sources consist of surveys and censuses
 Examples of secondary sources are: administrative data, Big data, and
Geospatial data
52
 Cont…
 The four main data collection systems used by any National Statistical
System (NSS) are: administrative records, censuses, sample surveys and
participatory assessments
 The following is a brief description of the more common sources of
official statistics:

53
 Administrative records
 Administrative records are data collected for the purpose of carrying
out various non-statistical programs
 Using administrative records presents a number of advantages to a
statistical agency and to analysts.
 Administrative sources of data traditionally have been defined as
collection of data held by the other parts of government
 They are collected and used for the purposes other than statistical
purposes
 Border records, pensions, taxation, and vital records like births and
deaths are examples of administrative data 54
 1.3 Survey and Census systems
Survey
 The term survey refers to "an investigation involving the collection of
elaborate information”
 Surveys are conducted involving complete enumeration and/or
sampling
 A simple definition of a survey is: “A method of measuring some
characteristics or set of characteristics of a population through the
use of scientific sampling techniques“
 Inferences are made about the entire population based upon a
representative sample of a portion of the population 55
 Importance of Statistical Surveys

 A statistical survey is an organized "structured" inquiry conducted to

obtain qualitative or quantitative information (data)
 It is based on scientific principles of statistics
 The booklet entitled "Supplemental Courses for Case Studies in
Surveys and Censuses, Sampling Lectures" published by the US Bureau
of the Census, Washington DC, in 1968 has listed basic reasons for the
use of samples in surveys

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 Importance of Statistical Surveys

 Limited funds
 Saving time
 Infinite population
 Controlling non sampling error
 Small area data
 Concentration on particular cases

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 Limited funds

 A sample survey is used for collecting information when limited funds

are available for the purpose
 As compared with the cost of complete census, a sample survey
may save money

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 Saving time
 A sample survey is a good option when data are desired more quickly
than would be possible with a complete census
 Sampling is also used for time series data
 Information may be required for a time series when data are available
only for particular periods of time and results are needed promptly

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 Infinite population
 Sampling from an Infinite population make valid statistical inferences
about the population from which the sample is taken
 For infinite population, a sample can play important role for drawing
inference about the population

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 Controlling non sampling error
 Non sampling errors are easier to control in small scale operations
 As such, a sample survey may give better results than a complete
census where non sampling errors are necessarily large

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 Concepts of Survey Design and Sample Design
 Survey design is the process of creating surveys with the goal of
receiving maximum insights from survey research
 It includes using an online survey tool to design a survey from scratch
or using ready-made survey templates
 Sample design methods generally refer to the technique used to select
sample units for measurement (e.g., select individuals from a
population or locations to sample within a study area)
 Sample design as a art of survey design comprises of the following

62
 Cont…
 Selection methods and procedures
 Sampling units: choice, designation and identification
 Allocation of sample sizes to stages of sampling units
 Stratification and allocation(sizes, rates) to strata

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 Household and Enterprise/Establishment
Surveys
Household Survey
 A household survey is a survey that is conducted at the household
level
 Household surveys are questionnaires that are given to a sample
of households in a population
 It collects information about household and the individuals living in
those households
 The concept of “household” is based on the arrangements made by
persons, individually or in groups, for providing themselves with food
and other essential for living 64
 Cont…
Housing Survey
 A housing survey collects information relating to the number and
condition of housing units
 The purpose of the housing survey is to describe housing conditions of
households and their housing expenditure
 It provides information on rents, charges, financing plans, income, and
many other features of people's quality of housing (especially the
most poorly housed) which are covered in detail in the housing survey

65
 Cont…
Establishment Surveys
 An establishment survey is a survey that collects information pertain
into an enterprise or part of an enterprise
 An establishment survey is a survey that seeks to measure the
behavior, structure, or output of organizations rather than individuals
 Establishment surveys include surveys of business that are critical to
our understanding of trends in the economy, such as the Economic
Census

66
 Census
 A census is an official survey of the population of a country that is
carried out in order to find out how many people live there and
to obtain details of such things as people's ages, jobs etc.
 A census is a statistical survey conducted on the full set of units
belonging to a given population or universe
 It is the complete enumeration of a population or groups at a point in
time with respect to well defined characteristics

67
 Importance of Population Census
 A Knowing the size of the population:
The population census is helpful in obtaining a number of people who
live in the country and the structure of the society
 Determining the taxable adults:
Population census helps in the determining the number of people who
can pay taxes which helps to estimate the amount of revenue that can be
obtained from the sector
 Forecasting the possible economic needs:
Population census helps to forecast the country’s economic needs, for
example, electricity, housing, food, etc 68
 Cont…
 A Knowing the size of the population:
The population census is helpful in obtaining a number of people who
live in the country and the structure of the society
 Determining the number of unemployed and the standard of living of
the citizens in the country
 Revealing the level of manpower:
Population census helps to reveal the level of manpower, that is, people
who are working
 Formulating economic policies
69
 Cont…
 Estimating the number of emigrants and immigrants
 Determining the population density, literacy, life expectancy etc
 Providing social amenities:
Population census data gives an idea of what kind of social amenities
should be provided to the particular families and areas, for example,
hospitals, housing, water, electricity and others
 Giving of aids:
Population census assists the government and international agencies in
helping the country
70
 Concept of Census design
 A census is the procedure of systematically calculating, acquiring and
recording information about the members of a given population
 A census design is the framework, or roadmap ,that serves as the basis
for conducting the census
 Most of the basic steps for census design:

711
 Cont…
 Determine the overall strategy for the census
 Defining the objectives of census
 Develop a work plan and budget for developing and carrying out the
census
 Prepare frames and maps for census field operations
 Design and test questionnaires
 Design and test the computer system, including data entry, editing and
tabulation

72
 Cont…
 Develop the field system, recruit and trained filed staff
 Conduct census enumeration
 Perform data processing, tabulate and analyze the data
 Prepare census report and disseminate results

73
 Types of Census
 Population census
 Housing census
 Census of agriculture
 Census of economic enterprises
 Census of manufacturing establishment

74
 Population census
 A census is an official survey of the population of a country that is
carried out in order to find out how many people live there and
to obtain details of such things as people's ages, jobs etc.
 A census is a statistical survey conducted on the full set of units
belonging to a given population or universe
 It is the complete enumeration of a population or groups at a point in
time with respect to well defined characteristics

75
 Housing census
 A housing census collects information relating to the number and
condition of housing units
 The purpose of the housing survey is to describe housing conditions of
households and their housing expenditure
 It provides information on rents, charges, financing plans, income, and
many other features of people's quality of housing (especially the
most poorly housed) which are covered in detail in the housing survey

76
 Census of agriculture
 Census of Agriculture is a source of community-level data
on agriculture
 By drawing on these data, decision makers will act in the interest of
farm operators, farm communities and agricultural sectors
 The World Program me for Census of Agriculture defines a census of
agriculture as “ a statistical operation for collecting, processing and
disseminating data on the structure of agriculture, covering the whole
or a significant art of a country”

77
 Census of economic enterprises
 The economic census is an important activity carried out by many
statistical offices with the aim of improving availability and quality of
existing basic economic statistics and establishing or improving their
survey frames
 An economic census is a valuable source of benchmark information on
total employment, employment by economic activity, hours of work,
and earnings, among others

78
 Census of Manufacturing establishment
 An establishment survey covers all establishments that were engaged
at any time during the inquiry period (the reference period to which
the data relate) in the production goods for sales or exchange
 It is a survey that seeks to measure the behavior, structure, or output
of organizations rather than individuals

79
 Survey and Census taking practices in Nepal
 The Central Bureau of Statistics(CBS) is the major data producer in the
country
 Other main data producers include: the line ministries, the public
sector institutes like the Nepal Rastra Bank, the research and training
institutions, and the NGOs
 CBS has been conducting large scale national census and survey
 The following are the main statistical activities of the CBS:

80
 Cont…
a) Periodic censuses: Decennial population census, decennial
agricultural census, quinquennial manufacturing establishment
census, and decennial economic census
b) Regular surveys: Nepal living standards survey, Nepal labour force
survey, and Annual
c) Ad hoc surveys: Crop and livestock survey, vegetables survey,
distributive trade Survey, freight margin survey, land transport survey,
Nepal multiple indicators cluster survey, and surveys related to the
international comparison programme
81
 Cont…
d) Quarterly/Annual price surveys
e) Several other surveys of service activities
f) Compilation of national accounts statistics, prices indices, and other
indicators

 Similarly, the following statistics are not covered by the CBS:

82
 Cont…
a) Food crop area and production statistics: are compiled and published
annually by the Ministry of Agricultural and Livestock Development
b) Education statistics: data on schools, students and teachers are
collected by the Ministry of Education
c) Health statistics: health related data are compiled and published by the
Ministry of Health and Population
d) Money and banking statistics: these fall under the responsibility of the
Nepal Rastra Bank
e) Export and import statistics: There are multiple sources - the Customs
Department, the Nepal Rastra Bank, and the Trade and Export
83
Promotion Centre
 Costing of Survey and Census
 Budgeting is one of the functions necessary for successfully planning and
carrying out a survey or a census
 Workload estimates and production rates are prerequisites for budgeting
 Workload is estimated for measurable units such as preparation of
enumeration maps, units to be enumerated, record to be keyed, and
result to be published

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 Cont…
Census costs in Nepal
 In the 1952/54 census one paisa was given to the enumerator for each
filled in individual slip (questionnaire)
 The total estimated cost of the census operation was around 1300 to
1400 thousand rupees
 In the 1971 census, enumerators were aid on a piece base (5 paisa for
each person counted)
 The total cost,however,is not available
 Similarly, the latest census 2011 budget was more than one billion
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 Cont…
 The cost of enumerating one sample household in surveys like Neal living
standards survey and Nepal labor force survey are not available
 However, it is most likely that the unit cost would be certainly higher
than that of the census

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 Sample Questions
 Why statistical surveys are important? Explain
 Describe the different types of surveys
 Describe, in brief, the survey and census practices in Nepal
 What is a survey? Describe the importance of surveys
 Describe the advantages of a census
 Describe the importance of a census in a developing country like
Nepal

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