AFRISTAT - | PARIS21
SEMINAR ON THE LAUNCHING OF THE STUDY
“AFRISTAT AFTER 2005”
7 to 9 May 2001
BAMAKO
AFRISTAT CONTRIBUTION TO
STATISTICAL CAPACITY BUILDING IN MEMBER STATES DURING THE 1996- 2000 PERIOD
25 April 2001
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Pages
MAIN ACRONYMS USED ………………………………………………………………… 3
SUMMARY………………………………………………………………………………….. 7
1. INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………….. 11
2. NATURE, OBJECTIVES AND ORGANISATION OF AFRISTAT………………... 11
2.1 Nature of AFRISTAT………………………………………………………………… 11
2.2. Objectives……………………………………………………………………………. 12
2.3. Organisation…………………………………………………………………………. 12
3. GENERAL METHOD OF WORK AT AFRISTAT…………………………………... 13
4. PRESENTATION OF THE ACTIONS UNDERTAKEN AND MAIN
OUTPUT DURING THE PERIOD 1996 TO 2000………...……………………...… 14
4.1 Operational Setting up of AFRISTAT…………………….………………………. 15
4.2. Institution Capacity Building………………………...…………………………… 16
4.3. National Accounts……………………………………..………………………….... 18
4.4. Classifications……………………………………….……………………………… 21
4.5. Macroeconomics and Analysis of the Current Economic Context….…….. 23
4.6. Price Statistics and Household Surveys……………………………………..… 23
4.7. Agricultural Statistics……………………………………………………………… 26
4.8. Employment and Informal Sector……...……………………………...………… 28
4.9. Poverty……………………………………………………………….………………. 30
4.10. Enterprise Statistics..……………………………………………….…………… 32
4.11. Computer Activities and Data Processing………………………………….… 32
4.12. Documentation and Data Dissemination……………………………………… 34
TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued)
5. BRIEF ANALYSIS OF ACTIONS AND PERFORMANCE…….….….…………… 37
5.1 Human Resources….…………………………………………..…………………… 37
5.2 Missions…………………………………….………………………………………… 37
5.3 Seminars……………………………………………………………………………… 37
5.4 Some Indicators for the Appreciation of Main Output……………...………… 38
6. PROBLEMS AND DIFFICULTIES…………………………………………………… 39
6.1. Institutional and Organisational Problems………………………..…………… 39
6.2. Financial Problems……………………………………………………….………… 40
7. CONCLUSION……………………………………………..…………………………… 41
ANNEXES………………………………………………………………………………….. 43
Annex 1: Staff Distribution…………………………………….……………………… 44
Annex 2: Distribution of missions on the basis of various criteria………...….. 45
Annex 3: Detailed distribution of missions by countries, areas and years….. 46
Annex 4: Technical Meetings and Seminars Organised by AFRISTAT…..…… 50
Annex 5: List of AFRISTAT publications…………………………………………… 57
MAIN ACRONYMS USED
Acronyms in English are mentioned in the Table below only for those institutions and terms, which have an official translation in English.
|Acronym (French) |Institution (French) |Acronym (English) |Institution (English) |
|ACBF |Fondation pour le renforcement des capacités | |African Capacity Building Foundation |
| |(African Capacity Building Foundation) | | |
|CAN |Association de comptabilité nationale | |National Accounting Association |
|AFD |Agence française de développement | |French Development Agency |
|AFRISTAT |Observatoire économique et statistique d’Afrique | |Sub-Saharan African Organisation for the |
| |subsaharienne | |development of economic studies and statistics |
| | | |systems |
|ASECNA |Agence pour la sécurité de la navigation aérienne| |Agency for Air Navigation Security in Africa and |
| |en Afrique et à Madagascar | |Madagascar |
|BCEAO |Banque Centrale des Etats de l’Afrique de l’ouest | |The Central Bank of West African States |
|BCS |Bureau de coopération statistique (EUROSTAT) | |Office for Co-operation on Statistics |
|BEAC |Banque des Etats de l’Afrique Centrale | |The Central Bank of Central African States |
|BIT |Bureau International du travail |ILO |International Labour Office |
|BOAD |Banque Ouest-Africaine de Développement | |West African Development Bank |
|CERPOD |Centre d’étude et de recherche sur la population | |Population Study and Research Centre for |
| |pour le développement | |Development |
|CDSE |Cadre pour le développement des statistiques de | |Framework for the Development of Statistics on the|
| |l’environnement | |Environment |
|CEA |Commission économique des Nations unies pour |ECA |United Nations Economic Commission for Africa |
| |l’Afrique | | |
|CEBEVIRHA |Communauté économique du bétail, de la viande et | |Livestock, Meat and Fish Economic Community |
| |des ressources halieutiques | | |
|CEBV |Communauté économique du bétail et de la viande | |Livestock and Meat Economic Community |
|CEDEAO |Communauté économique des Etats de l’Afrique de |ECOWAS |Economic Community of West African States |
| |l’ouest | | |
|Acronym (French) |Institution (French) |Acronym (English) |Institution (English) |
|CEFIL |Centre de formation de l’INSEE à Libourne | |INSEE Training Centre at Libourne (France) |
|CEMAC |Communauté économique et monétaire de l’Afrique | |Central African Economic and Monetary Community |
| |centrale | | |
|CESD |Centre européen de formation des statisticiens | |European Training Centre for |
| |économistes des pays en voie de développement | |Economists-Statisticians from |
| | | |Developing Countries |
|CHAPO |Calcul harmonisé des prix sur ordinateur | |Harmonised computer-aided calculation of Prices |
|CILSS |Comité permanent inter Etats de lutte contre la | |Inter- State Standing Committee for Drought |
| |sécheresse dans le Sahel | |control in the Sahel |
|CITI |Classification internationale type, par industrie,|ISIC |International standard classification by |
| |de toutes branches d’activité économique | |industries, of all types of economic activities |
|DGSEE |Direction générale de la statistique et des études| |Directorate General of Statistics and Economic |
| |économiques (Gabon) | |Studies (Gabon) |
|DIAL |Développement et insertion internationale | |Development and international integration |
|EDS |Enquête démographique et de santé | |Population and Health Survey |
|EMAC |Etude multidisciplinaire de l’Afrique centrale | |Multidisciplinary Study of Central Africa |
|EMAS |Equipe multidisciplinaire de l’Afrique sahélienne | |Sahelian African Multidisciplinary Team |
|EMEAP |Enquête auprès des | |Household and |
| |ménages et des exploitants agropastoraux | |Agro-pastoral farming Survey (Mauritania) |
| |(Mauritanie) | | |
|ENSEA |Ecole nationale supérieure de statistique et | |National High School of Statistics and Applied |
| |d’économie appliquée (Abidjan) | |Economics (Abidjan) |
|ERETES |Equilibre Ressources - Emplois, Tableau | |Balance of Resources and Application of funds, |
| |Entrées-Sorties | |Table of Incoming and Outgoing Funds |
|EUROCOST |European Center for Worldwide Cost of living |EUROCOST |European Center for Worldwide Cost of living |
| |Comparisons (asbl) | |Comparisons (asbl) |
|Acronym (French) |Institution (French) |Acronym (English) |Institution (English) |
|EUROSTAT |Office statistique des communautés européennes |EUROSTAT |European Communities Statistics Office |
|FAO |Organisation des Nations unies pour l’agriculture |FAO |United Nations Organisation for Food and |
| |et l’alimentation | |Agriculture |
|FED |Fonds européen de développement |EDF |European Development Fund |
|FMI |Fonds monétaire international |IMF |International Monetary Fund |
|IHPC |Indice harmonisé des prix à la consommation |HCPI |Harmonised Consumer Price Index |
|INS |Institut national de statistique |NSO |National Statistical Office |
|INSEE |Institut national de la statistique et des études | |National Office of Statistics and Economic Studies|
| |économiques (France) | |(France) |
|ISE |Ingénieur statisticien économiste | |Engineer in Statistics and Economics |
|ISSEA |Institut sous-régional de statistique et | |Sub-regional Institute For Statistics and |
| |d’économie appliquée (Yaoundé) | |Applied Economics (Yaounde) |
|NAEMA |Nomenclature d’activités des membres d’AFRISTAT | |Activities Nomenclature of AFRISTAT Members |
|NOPEMA |Nomenclature des produits des Etats membres | |Products Nomenclature of AFRISTAT Member States |
| |d’AFRISTAT | | |
|OCDE |Organisation de coopération et de développement |OECD |Organisation for Economic Co-operation and |
| |économiques | |Development |
|ODA |Overseas Developpement Administration | |Overseas Development Administration (United |
| |(Royaume-Uni) | |Kingdom) |
|OEF |Office de l’emploi et de la formation (Mali) | |Office for Employment and Training |
|ORSTOM |Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) | |Development Research Institute |
|PARSTAT |Programme d’appui régional statistique | |Regional Support Programme |
| | | |For Statistics |
|PED |Pays en développement | |Developing Countries |
|Acronym (French) |Institution (French) |Acronym (English) |Institution (English) |
|PIB |Produit intérieur brut |GDP |Gross Domestic Product |
|PNUD |Programme des Nations unies pour le développement |UNDP |United Nations Development Programme |
|PROSMIC |Programme statistique minimum commun |PROSMIC |Common Minimum Statistical Programme |
|PSB |Programme statistique biennal | |Biannual Statistics Programme |
|SCN |Système de comptabilité nationale | |National Accounting System |
|SGDD |Système général de diffusion des données |GDDS |General Data Dissemination Standard |
|SSN |Système statistique national | |National Statistical System |
|UEMOA |Union économique et monétaire Ouest Africaine | |West African Economic and Monetary Union |
|UNESCO |Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’éducation, |UNESCO |United Nations Organisation for Education, Science|
| |la science et la culture | |and Culture |
SUMMARY
This document was drafted by the Directorate General to serve as a basis for the discussion on Topic 1 of the seminar on the launching of the study “AFRISTAT after 2005”. The paper is entitled “AFRISTAT contribution to statistical capacity building during the period 1996 to 2000: objectives, achievements, problems and difficulties encountered, solutions adopted or recommended”.
The objective of this document is to present, as objectively as possible, the achievements of AFRISTAT Directorate General over its first five years of operation and to identify the main problems encountered over the period in implementing the mandate entrusted to it by the constituent treaty. In addition to the introduction and the conclusion, the document comprises 5 sections: after recalling the objectives the organisation and general method of work of AFRISTAT, the document presents and briefly examines the activities undertaken and the main output in the main areas concerned. Thereafter the difficulties encountered and the solutions adopted or recommended are presented.
This document highlights the achievements of AFRISTAT over its first five years of operation in the following fields: institutional capacity building, national accounts, classifications, macroeconomics and current economic development, price statistics and households surveys, agricultural statistics, employment and the informal sector, poverty, enterprise statistics as well as computer activities and data processing. The activities, which contribute to ensure an effective dissemination of information, are also described.
The Economic and Statistical Observatory of Sub-Saharan Africa is a tool for the building of the statistical capacities and the harmonisation of concepts and methods, a pre requisite to the comparability of statistics. It should promote the dissemination of statistical information within the sub-region.
For the effective performance of its mission, the Observatory has a permanent organ, namely, the Directorate General which is a flexible and small structure including, in addition to the Director General and the Deputy Director General, 10 Experts whose profiles were defined according to the priorities spelt out in 1992 by the Founding States: two National Accountants, one Price statistician, one Expert in Household Survey, two statisticians Experts in Data Processing and Computer, one Macroeconomist, one Economist Statistician specialised in the informal sector, employment, and poverty, one Agricultural Statistician and one Expert in enterprise statistics. France supports six of these experts under technical co-operation agreement. In addition, 10 locally recruited staff members assist this team.
At the financial level, after a two-year transitional period (1996-1997) during which the AFRISTAT Budget was sustained by a subsidy from France and part of the financing provided under a support programme of the European Union, routine activities are being financed for an eight-year period by the AFRISTAT Fund which was set up with contributions from Member States and France. Other donors contacted had declined the offer to subscribe to the capital of the Fund, preferring to finance statistical projects at national or regional level.
During the five-year period, 1996-2000, the AFRISTAT Directorate General maintained a sustained rhythm of activities despite the problems and difficulties encountered.
After five years of activities, of which approximately three were marked by optimum operations one can ask the question as to what was the impact of these activities on the development of the national statistical system, of Member States.
The response to this question is difficult at least for the following three reasons:
• The development of the national statistical systems is the result of the combined efforts of the Member States, AFRISTAT (as a tool for capacity-building) and donors, since the main responsibility falls on the Government of each country.
• In order to assess the impact of the efforts of the three items mentioned above, it is necessary to have appropriate performance indicators for each of the statistical sectors of activity. This evaluation exercise is currently underway at the AFRISTAT Directorate General.
• The data concerning the resources allocated to statistical development, particularly to financial resources are relatively incomplete and often difficult to assemble.
The following positive observations can however be made:
• The creation of AFRISTAT has enabled the NSOs to break their isolation from one another. Consequently, leaders at the highest level such as the national Experts of the various fields of activity could establish fruitful contacts, exchange their respective experiences and indulge in brainstorming through the frequent meetings organised by the Observatory. The technical support provided by the AFRISTAT Experts to their national counterparts contributed not only to the imparting of know-how but also to assisting the latter in boosting their self-confidence;
• With the adoption of the Common Minimum Statistical Programme (PROSMIC), Member States currently have a strategic framework for the development of statistics during the next five years. It is up to them to adapt it to their specific needs;
• The basis for the harmonisation and the comparability of statistics were established over the past five years with the following developments:
← Design of common activity and products classifications;
← Design of a common methodological base for national accounts and utilisation of a common tool, namely the ERETES module
← Design of common concepts for surveys on employment and the informal sector;
← Development of a common methodology and tool for the design of the consumer price indices (ref. the UEMOA and CEMAC Prices Projects)
← Development of methodological guides in the areas of prices and national accounts;
← The commencement of improved dissemination of statistical information by using new technologies: Internet, CD- ROM etc.
• The technical expertise of the Observatory is acknowledged far beyond the geographical zone made up by its Member States and also by the bilateral and multilateral donors. In testimony is the following operations carried out, both in non-member States as well as on behalf of African Inter-Governmental Organisation:
← Support to the establishment of a national consumer price index in Madagascar, with financing from France;
← Design of the first price index in Djibouti, with World Bank financing;
← Study of purchasing power parities in ASECNA Member States;
← Design of a national account modernisation programme for Cape Verde;
← Compilation of the terms of reference for the harmonisation of the statistical priorities necessary for multilateral supervision within ECOWAS;
← Organisation and co-animation of several seminars bringing together AFRISTAT Member and non-member States, particularly in the field of agricultural statistics (with the FAO) household surveys (with the World Bank), the informal sector with several institutions and donors) and poverty.
These significant achievements should be broadened and consolidated and should not hide the insufficiencies which still subsist.
• Even though some progress was made, the national resources (human, financial and material) allocated to the development of national statistical systems still remain very inadequate;
• The organisation and general management of national statistical systems are still inadequate in many countries despite the recommendation of the seminars organised for the Directors of NSOs;
• The dissemination of statistical information is still weak with many insufficiencies;
• The administrative difficulties encountered in the implementation of the statistical programmes financed by donors must be mentioned among the impediments to the development of statistical activities: projects whose financing is secured take months or even years to materialise.
In conclusion, the following points can be emphasised:
AFRISTAT Member States currently have an operational integration tool whose routine functioning is ensured over a long period through an original financing mechanism, and whose expertise is now acknowledged at the regional and international level.
The strategic framework for the medium term development of statistics is in place. It spells out the major orientations, objectives, activities and expected results in six fields of great importance for the Member States and the international community.
The basis for the harmonisation, comparability and improvement of national statistics were established with the adoption of conceptual frameworks and methodologies, common classifications and tools.
Appropriate training sessions were carried out and others are programmed in the short and medium- terms.
The statistical isolation of Member States was broken to some extent. Working in common in the sub-region had become a reality.
The technical conditions for the creation of a future African statistical system are in the process of being fulfilled gradually.
A lot was achieved in five years in conformity with AFRISTAT mandate. However, much ground still remains to be covered. The challenge can be won if Member States rely on the thorough work done for them and with them by the Directorate General and if they allocate adequate resources to the development of statistics because, in the final analysis, it is these Member States which are first of all responsible for the improvement in statistical information and the first beneficiaries of this improvement.
1.
INTRODUCTION
This document was prepared by the AFRISTAT Directorate General to serve as a basis for the discussion of Topic 1 of the seminar for the launching of the study “AFRISTAT after 2005”. The paper is entitled “AFRISTAT contribution to statistical capacity building during the period 1996 to 2000: objectives, achievements, problems and difficulties encountered, solutions adopted or recommended.”
Five years after the effective start of AFRISTAT activities at its head office in Bamako on 2nd January 1996, it became necessary, following a decision by Management Committee and approved by Council of Ministers to undertake a study on the future of AFRISTAT for the following main reasons:
• When signing on 21st September 1993 in Abidjan the treaty establishing an Economic and Statistical Observatory of Sub-Saharan Africa called AFRISTAT, the Ministers of Finance of Member States of the Franc Zone established a financing mechanism for the first ten years phase. This phase, which began on 1st January 1996, will end on 31 December 2005. It is therefore necessary to reflect, as from now, on the role, activities and mode of financing of the Observatory after this date and to take the necessary decisions on time for the new mechanism to be operational on 1 January 2006 latest;
• Since the inception of AFRISTAT, a lot of changes have occurred in its environment: establishment of two economic and monetary unions, namely CEMAC and UEMOA1, which bring together 14 of the 17 Member States; AFRISTAT was enlarged to include States which are not members of the Franc Zone, and other States expressed interest in joining; the submission of new requests for statistical data particularly within the framework of strategies for poverty reduction strategies, the strengthening of the regional integration process, particularly with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)2 after the decision taken by the Heads of State to create a single monetary zone before the end of the year 2004, etc.
These changes call for a reflection on how to adapt the institutional framework, the organisation and functioning as well as the programme of activities of AFRISTAT.
The objective of this document is to outline, in the most objective manner, the achievements of AFRISTAT Directorate General over its first five years of operations, and identify the main problems encountered over the period in implementing the mandates entrusted to it by the constituent treaty. The objective is not an evaluation of AFRISTAT. Independent consultants will carry this task, during the last but one phase of the study, which will begin in March 2002.
In addition to the introduction and conclusion, the document comprises five sections. After recalling the objectives, organisation and the general method of work of AFRISTAT, we will proceed with the presentation of the activities undertaken and the results obtained in the main concerned, and briefly examine them. The difficulties encountered and the solutions adopted or recommended will subsequently be presented.
2. NATURE, OBJECTIVES AND ORGANISATION OF AFRISTAT
1. Nature of AFRISTAT
There were three main reasons for the creation of AFRISTAT namely:
• Awareness on the part of Member States of the Franc Zone of the need to pool their scare resources in other to halt the decline of their statistical systems which was observed throughout the 1980 decade;
• The fulfilment of the conditions favourable for the creation of a supranational agency responsible for promoting the consistency, and comparability of statistical information in all the Member States, following the political will expressed in the early 1990s for the renewal and strengthening of the regional integration process;
• The concern to promote reliable economic and social information, which would be accessible timely under the best conditions of cost to all the economic and social agents and citizens with a view to strengthening the democratisation process.
The nature of AFRISTAT stems directly from the reasons that prompted its creation. The Economic and Statistical Observatory of Sub Saharan Africa is a tool for statistical capacity building and the harmonisation of concepts and methods, which are prerequisites for the comparability of statistics. It should promote the circulation of statistical information within the region.
2.2. Objectives
In conformity with Article 2 of the Constituent Treaty, AFRISTAT objective is to contribute towards the development of economic, social and environmental statistics in Member States and to enhance expertise in these fields.
Its role is to3:
• Design, for the Member States, a common methodology for the collection, processing and dissemination of basic statistical information;
• Harmonise accordingly, the concepts and classifications utilised by Member States in order to make the statistics comparable;
• Improve the dissemination and utilisation of statistical information in all the Member States, particularly by organising databases accessible to the various economic and social agents in the region;
• Undertake analyses and wrap-up reviews for all the Member States;
• Contribute towards the organisation of permanent training in statistics and economic studies for Member States;
• Provide its support to the national statistical institutions of Member States; to this end, it can contribute towards the preparation of projects financed by multilateral and bilateral donors at regional level, at the level of several Member States, or of one Member State at the latter’s request of the latter.
2.3. Organisation
In order to perform its function effectively the Observatory has a permanent organ namely: the Directorate General, which is a flexible and small structure composed, in addition to the Director General and the Deputy Director General, of 10 Experts whose profiles were defined according to the priorities defined in 1992 by the Founding States; two National Accountants one a Price Statistician, one Expert in household surveys, two statisticians Experts in Data Processing and Computer, one Macroeconomist, One Economist specialised in the informal sector, employment, and poverty, and one Agricultural Statistician and one Expert in enterprise statistics. France under French Technical Co-operation supports six of these Experts4.
The Director General and the Deputy Director General are Experts in the organisation of national statistical systems and training.
10 locally recruited persons assist this team. In addition to the office of the Director General, the AFRISTAT Directorate General comprises administrative and financial units and three departments, each of which is headed by a co-ordinator. These three Departments are respectively: Surveys and statistics, Analytical studies and economic reviews and Data processing computer documentation and publications.
Four priorities were identified at the time of the establishment of AFRISTAT: national accounts, consumer prices, household surveys for the monitoring of living conditions particularly among the vulnerable groups, and the promotion and dissemination of statistical information.
The limitation to six years of the duration of service of the Experts ensures the flexibility necessary in the management of profiles in order to deal with the new priorities of Member States.
The Council of Ministers, which is the supreme organ, defines the major orientations and adopts the regulations making the common standards mandatory. Directorate General action’s is supervised by a Management Committee comprising the Directors of the National Statistics Offices, the representatives of Central Banks of Economic and Monetary Unions and of Development Partners. It has extensive powers particularly in budgetary matters.
Finally, a Scientific Council comprising 14 members widely open to the outside world (public and private sector users, academics, international organisations, etc.) assists the Management Committee in the consideration of the major orientations, work programmes and methodological questions.
At the financial level, after a two-year transition period, (1996-1997) during which AFRISTAT’s budget was sustained by a subsidy from France, and part of the financing under a European Union Support Programme5, the routine activities are being financed for an eight-year period by the AFRISTAT Fund, which was established by contributions from Member States and France. Other donors contacted had declined the offer to subscribe to the Fund’s capital, preferring to finance statistical projects at national or regional level.
Through the financing mechanism adopted, the routine functioning of the Observatory will continue for a long period without it being necessary to resort to annual contributions from Member States, or to revenue generated by the projects financed by bilateral or multilateral donors.
3. GENERAL METHOD OF WORK AT AFRISTAT
Two fundamental principles underlay AFRISTAT’s approach.
• Subsidiary: This allows for a definition of the optimum distribution of tasks between AFRISTAT and the national statistical systems6. The work must be carried out at regional or national level, which ensures maximum effectiveness;
• Sustainability: the development of statistics is a long-term work. It requires that Member States be provided with capacity for sustainable production, statistical information analysis and dissemination for decision-making. This development should be planned and co-ordinated at the national and regional level for the purposes of economic integration. It is therefore necessary to define the regional strategy in this field. As will be seen further, the Common Minimum Statistical Programme (PROSMIC) was designed to this end.
AFRISTAT objective is to restore the long-term economic and social information production capacity in the Member States.
It is a regional integration tool in the fields of statistics and macro-economic analysis. Its actions support the national statistical systems (particularly the National Statistical Offices) and its approach is based on the co-ordination and harmonisation of concepts, standards, methods and sources.
It aims at enhancing the response capacities of national statistical systems on their request by taking into account:
• The weakness of the institutional framework, particularly that of the NSOs;
• The lack of experts and material resources;
• The increasing demand from national and international decision-makers for reliable and quickly available information.
Consequently, the general work method consists in the following:
• Making an inventory of the sources and methods used by the national statistical systems of Member States;
• Identifying and mobilising the experience and know-how (concepts, methods, tools) acquired by international experts and agencies;
• “Auditing” the results, ensuring comparisons, disseminating information; the expected by-products of these activities is to break the isolation of the national statisticians and ensure greater coherence and reliability of the information produced;
• Organising work groups of national experts from Member States in order to:
← Harmonise and promote concepts, standards, methods, sources and results,
← Define and design pertinent and coherent tools
• Assisting in the adoption of tools, which will make it possible to respond to the information needs of national decision-makers.
This general approach is used under the annual programmes adopted by the Management Committee after the advice of the Scientific Council, and spelling out:
• The priority areas,
• The intervention modalities (support missions, Experts’ meetings etc)
• Working schedules
• The expected output.
4. PRESENTATION OF THE ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN AND MAIN OUTPUT DURING THE PERIOD 1996 TO 2000
From its first meeting in February 1996, the Management Committee set the course of action to be pursued by the Directorate General as follows:
• Continuing to participate actively in the project for the harmonisation of consumer price indices in the UEMOA Member States;
• Undertaking a survey on the situation of national statistical systems with a view to formulating proposals for a sustainable development of statistics;
• Designing a two-year interim programme in important areas; namely, institutional capacity building, harmonisation of classifications and modernisation of national accounts.
The 1996 survey on the situation of national statistical systems made it possible to note the following7:
• Inadequacy of human, material and financial resources;
• Lack of clearly defined priorities and lack of work programmes both at the level of the NSOs and that of the other institutions responsible for statistics collection;
• Lack or non functioning of the co-ordination mechanism at the national level;
• A strong rotation of the supervisory staff whose expertise is inadequately acknowledged within the NSO;
• A relative isolation of the statistical departments which have few relations between them; this to a large extent, explains the lack of comparability between the statistics produced;
• A statistical production unsuitable for the needs of the users particularly, national decision-makers, on account of its unreliability and the long delays in the dissemination of the data.
The improvement in the national statistical situation and the development of statistics require a thorough reform. This is a complex task, which covers not only the organisational and institutional aspects but also the technical and methodological aspects in the various fields of production, analysis and dissemination of statistical information.
In this section, the achievements of AFRISTAT over its first five years of operation will be presented in the following areas: institution capacity building, national accounts, classifications, macroeconomics and the short-term economic development, price statistics and household surveys, agricultural statistics, employment and the informal sector, poverty, enterprise statistics and data processing. The activities contributing to ensuring a better dissemination of information will also be described.
First of all, it will be necessary to recall briefly the schedule for the operational setting up of the Observatory.
4.1. Operational Setting up of AFRISTAT
AFRISTAT started its activities on 2nd January 1996 with the arrival at its head office in Bamako, of the Director General and the Price Statistician.
The operational setting up covers the following aspects:
• The physical setting up of the Observatory;
• The institutional and organisational setting up;
• Recruitment of staff members;
• Setting-up the financing plan.
Much of it was completed at the beginning of 1998.
4.1.1. Physical Setting up of the Observatory
Renovation works on the premises provided by the Government of Mali and the acquisition of the first equipment, were carried out during the first half of 1996 through the payment of the first part of the French subvention for the commencement of AFRISTAT’s operations. The rest of the equipment was acquired in 1997 from the funds of the EDF Support Programme. Additional equipment was acquired subsequently as and when the personnel were being recruited.
2. Institutional and Organisational Setting up of the Observatory
The two main statutory bodies were put in place very quickly with the first meetings of the Management Committee (Bamako: 26 and 27 February 1996) and the Council of Ministers (N’djamena: 18 April 1996). The Scientific Council held its first meeting in Bamako on 6 and 7 January 1997.
During its first meeting, the Management Committee established the Experts Selection Committee and the Budget Implementation Control Committee. The Management Committee and the Council of Ministers adopted in 1997 and at the beginning of 1998, the basic texts, which complement the Constituent Treaty of 21 September 1993. The texts include the Financial and Accounting Regulations, the rules of procedure of the Management Committee and the Council of Ministers, and the Staff Regulations for the Directorate General staff members. The Scientific Council adopted its Rules of Procedure during its first meeting.
As at 31 December 2000, the Scientific Committee had met five times, the Management Committee six times and the Council of Ministers eight times.
3. Recruitment of Personnel.
The recruitment of personnel was spread over the first three years of operation of the Observatory and the team of Experts was completed only towards the end of the year 2000 with the arrival of the Macro-Economist. However, of the 12 posts of Experts including the Director General and the Deputy Director General, 10 were filled in March 1998, in other words, at the beginning of the third year of operations.
The local support staffs were recruited gradually depending on the increase in the workload of Directorate General.
The list of Experts and their dates of assumption of office feature in annex 1.
4. Introduction of the Financing plan
The financing plan adopted by the Ministers on the day of the signing of the treaty establishing AFRISTAT covered a 10-year period (1996-2000). It was updated in October 1995 to take into account the effects of the devaluation of the CFA franc in January 1994. It has two distinct phases as follows:
• A 2-year transitional phase (1996 and 1997) corresponding to the establishment of AFRISTAT and the commencement of its activities. This phase was mainly financed with a subvention in an amount of FCFA 300 million from France, since the financing was completed by a portion of the credits of the EDF Support Programme to AFRISTAT8 which was responsible for the salaries of five African Experts for fifteen months and a portion of the equipment and the routine operating costs
• An 8-year regular phase, which began on 1 January 1998 with the establishment of the AFRISTAT Fund. During this phase, the routine AFRISTAT Budget was sustained by a quota of the capital and the interests generated. The initial capital of the Fund was fixed at FCFA 3 350,000,000 broken down as follows:
➢ Member States: FCFA 1,850 billion, or FCFA 132,145,000 per each of the 14 Founder Member States
➢ France: FCFA 1,500 billion
With two new Member States joining the Organisation (Guinea Bissau and Mauritania in 1998) Council decided that each new Member State would to pay in the same contribution to the capital of the Fund as the signatories of the Treaty.
The theoretical capital of the Fund as at today stands at FCFA 3 746, 465, 000. It will be entirely depleted on 31 December 2005.
The management of the Fund was entrusted to the Agence Française de Développement, which signed, to this effect, an agreement with each Member State.
During the 1995-2000 period, the amount of the annual budget financed by the AFRISTAT Fund averaged FCFA 427 million.
4.2. Institution Capacity Building
4.2.1. Objectives
In the field of institution capacity building, the objectives are as follows:
• Building the managerial capacities of the national statistical systems (particularly the NSO) through training /sensitisation action and the design of the appropriate tools
• Defining a regional strategic framework for the co-ordinated and sustainable development of the national statistical systems
• Assisting the regional integration agencies to design statistical programmes tailored to their specific needs.
2. Actions undertaken and main output
In order to reach the first objective AFRISTAT Directorate General organised between 1998 and 2000, within the framework of the EDF support programme, a series of three seminars, workshops for the Directors General of the NSOs. These seminars covered respectively the managerial and project steering strategies of an NSO, the dissemination and communication strategies and the quality approach. They gave the opportunity to participants to share their experiences and acquaint themselves with the best practices in each of the fields tackled. They finally provided an opportunity for the formulation of a number of recommendations whose gradual implementation should contribute towards a significant enhancement of their managerial, communication and information dissemination capacities. Finally, a study on the institutional situation of the INS is underway with a view to proposing tools for an effective follow- up and an effective management of statistical activities at national level.
The second objective was translated into the design, between 1998 and 2000, of the regional strategic framework for statistical development; the Common Minimum Statistical Programme called PROSMIC which was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 19 September 2000.
PROSMIC is the reference framework for the development of statistics in Member States during the 2001-2005, 5-year period. It covers six priority fields:
• Statistical co-ordination;
• National accounts;
• Economic and social short-term developments;
• Dissemination of statistical information;
• Statistics for the monitoring of the living conditions of households and poverty;
• Agricultural statistics
PROSMIC comprises two major groups of activity namely, national activities and regional activities.
The former are undertaken by the national statistical systems whereas the latter are carried out by the Directorate General of AFRISTAT or with its support. The national activities are mainly operational activities meant for the capacity building of the national statistical systems in the priority fields of PROSMIC.
The regional activities comprise conceptual and methodological activities, seminars and training workshops as well as technical support to the national statistical systems with a view to the proper execution of the national activities and an improvement in the comparability of the data produced for the needs of regional co-operation.
The third objective materialised by the active participation of AFRISTAT’s Directorate General in the design in 1997 of a regional statistical programme for the Commission of the West African Economic and Monetary Union, called PARSTAT9 as well as the design at the beginning of the year 2000, on behalf of the Executive Secretariat of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa, of a 2-year statistical programme called PSB/CEMAC (Biannual Statistical Programme of the CEMAC) including “a Consumer price indices harmonisation ” whose preparatory activities began in 1998.
Each year, since 1997, a survey on the activities and operational conditions of the INS of Member States is conducted, and the AFRISTAT Directorate General regularly publishes detailed results.
The Directorate General has also participated, in the year 2000, in the evaluation of the Addis Ababa Plan of Action for the development of statistics in Africa, which was adopted in 1990 by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).
Furthermore, it prepared, with the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), the terms of reference of a minimum statistical programme for ECOWAS within the framework of the harmonisation of priority statistics for multilateral supervision.
Finally, the Directorate General participated regularly in the meetings of the United Nations Statistical Commission. These meetings were organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the meetings of the PARIS 21 Consortium10.
2. National Accounts
1. Objectives
With regard to national accounts, the general objective of AFRISTAT is to assist Member States to modernise their national accounts.
This modernisation involves:
• Implementation of the new System of National Accounts (SNA 93);
• Use of the new harmonised methods for the compilation of accounts; the choice of a new base year;
• Use of the computer assisted tool in the compilation of accounts.
The new system of national accounts
The 93 SNA, adopted by the International Community in 1993 gives the Developing Countries (DC) the opportunity to modernise their national accounts. It provides an opportunity to deepen the content, harmonise the methodologies for its Preparation in order to make it an effective tool for the management of national economies and useful instruments in multilateral supervision within the framework of economic and monetary unions.
The shift to 93 SNA recommended by the United Nations is expected to be done by successive stages (6 stages) defined as “milestones”. The AFRISTAT Management Committee which relied on the opinion of the Scientific Council, set as objective for AFRISTAT Member States, the attainment of the first three stages (complete compilation of a Table of income and expenditure, production accounts for all the institutional sectors up to the financial Account for the public Administrations and for the rest of the World) with the possibility for the States which have the resources to shift to a supplementary stage (up to the capital account for all the institutional sectors)
One can raise the issues of the improvement of the statistical base as a prerequisite for the modernisation of accounts. Indeed, most of the States have only one fragile system for the compilation of their statistics. It is for the time being difficult in these countries to ensure over the long- term control over the various statistical fields and their continuity over time. It is therefore an illusion to expect to have all the information desirable for the compilation of more reliable national accounts. It will, on the contrary, be necessary to implement a tool for the compilation of the accounts and which is capable of addressing the inadequacies noted. This logic dictates that there should not be any delay in the works concerning the compilation of the national accounts on a basis consistent with the 93 SNA. At the same time, ways will be sought to ensure an improvement in the basic statistics. This can only be done in a gradual manner.
Recourse to harmonised methods of compilation of accounts.
As at now, the national accounts data are not comparable from one State to the other, to such a point that the economic and monetary unions will not use performance criteria in which the GDP feature for as long as the latter will not be made more comparable.
Difficulties in comparing the economic data in the States stem mainly from four factors namely:
• Unequal basic quality data draw-up according to different processes;
• Different methodologies of compilation of the accounts;
• Fields covered a vary from country to country;
• Different tools for the compilation up of accounts.
In order to ensure the comparability of the national accounts data, Member States decided to provide themselves with a common methodological base for the compilation of national accounts. This base is a prerequisite for the modernisation of the national accounts within a harmonised framework. It is also necessary to ascertain whether the provisional and estimated accounts are harmoniously articulated on this common base and produce results consistent with the General Data Dissemination System (GDDS) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF); field of data application; frequency and time frame of dissemination, quality, integrity, access to the public.
The choice of a new base year
In many States, the base year which serves as reference for the evaluation in absolute terms of the national accounting aggregates was most often very old, prior to the devaluation of the CFA Franc in 1994. In view of this devaluation, it is probable that the structure of accounts has been significantly reviewed since the base year, which affected the quality of evaluations in absolute terms.
The use of the computer assisted tool in the compilation of accounts.
The large volume of information necessary for the compilation of national accounts and the complex nature of their processing make the recourse to the computer natural and absolutely necessary. The structure of the data to be processed and the mode of the compilation of the accounts suggest the establishment of a database, updated by the different sources of information available and which make it possible to undertake the necessary processing for the compilation of the accounts. It is on these general principles that the ERETES module was developed. Income - Expenditure Balance, Input – Output Table for assisting in the compilation of the national accounts and chosen by AFRISTAT as medium for its technical assistance for the modernisation of the national accounts systems in Member States. France and the European Union financed jointly the development of the module. A Steering Committee co-chaired by the two donors was established with the objective of outlining the major orientations in the area of the development and dissemination of the module.
The ERETES module makes it possible to support the work of the teams of national Accountants. It proposed both a working screen, task guidance on a relational database. The module is handy, in other words, it has been designed to adapt to local situations, be it economic characteristics or the choices, adopted for the compilation of the accounts.
The module therefore provides simultaneously:
• A methodological framework for the compilation of national accounts;
• An integrated technical assistance which ensures that the methods to be used are acquired;
• A modern computer environment conducive for team work
The module makes it possible to draw up the accounts in the base year and in the current year, both at current prices and at the prices of the previous year.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
Update on the existing situation
Exploratory missions were undertaken to the Member States during the second half of 1997 to identify the existing national accounts situation. The following four observations emerged from these missions:
• The statistical data necessary for the compilation of the national accounts were often lacking or of weak quality;
• The human resources available were inadequate, sometimes inadequately trained and often unstable;
• The accounts were mainly based on the 93 SNA, with a scope and a structure which varied from State to State;
• The accounts were, particularly the final accounts, compiled with a lot of delay.
During the two seminars on the feed back review of the exploratory missions, (one for West Africa and the other for Central Africa and the Comoros) the need to harmonise the methods for the compilation of the national accounts of Member States was highlighted. The following priority fields were identified:
• Agriculture;
• Livestock;
• Administration accounts;
• Treatment of external trade and the balance of payments;
• Processing of the accounts of enterprises;
• Treatment of the corporate accounts;
• Treatment of external aid;
• Taking into account of the informal sector.
A working group was then established to study these methodological problems and propose solutions.
Development of a methodological guide for the compilation of national accounts in AFRISTAT Member States
Eight meetings of the working group were organised between April 1998 and April 2000, involving some 30 national Accountants who are national experts, and around 15 representatives from Central Banks and regional integration organisations.
All these exercises culminated in a methodological document on the compilation of national accounts for AFRISTAT Member States. This document, which is in the form of an evolutionary methodological guide, comprises two sections, the first presents a brief summary of the SCN 93, the second section reviews the methodological works of the working groups. Adopted by the scientific council and subsequently by the Management Committee in the autumn of 2000, the methodological guide will be extensively disseminated during the year 2001.
Modernisation of Accounts in Member States
At the time of the creation of AFRISTAT, only the Central African Republic, had, to some extent, carried out a modernisation of its accounts. Four other countries namely, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Chad, subsequently had started the process: Cameroon and Côte d’Ivoire, within the framework of the development of the ERETES module for assisting in the compilation of accounts, Chad with the assistance of the UNDP and Mali with that of the IMF.
AFRISTAT Directorate General provided support to Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire then Mali for the implementation of the ERETES module. It also began to implement the module in Mauritania.
For all these countries, the new Series of accounts will become “official” only when there is enough long historical data (at least 3 or 4 years). Preparatory missions in connection with implementation of the module were also undertaken to Benin and Senegal.
AFRISTAT Experts participated in a seminar organised in Accra (1998) to compare the use of the ERETES module in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana. It was demonstrated that the ERETES module could be used by economies of English -Speaking countries. This has contributed to the development of an English version of the module.
Other Activities
The AFRISTAT Directorate General assisted Côte d’Ivoire to compile its provisional accounts (1995-1996) and Senegal to finalise its 1997 final accounts. AFRISTAT Experts have also intervened in Cape Verde and Chad in order to review their work in the area of national accounts and the development prospects.
For the purposes of multilateral supervision, within the UEMOA Member States and in view of the problems of the comparability of macro economic data mentioned earlier on, the Directorate General of AFRISTAT conducted a study aimed at reconciling the GDP estimates of the various UEMOA Member States. Transitional scales were also developed to ensure a shift from the current GDP to a more comparable GDP, according to a harmonised base defined by mutual agreement. The harmonisation currently covers the field of accounts and their presentation. If the GDP targeted are first of all those of the current year ( n year ) and the future year ( n +1 year ) the GDP of the previous years are also revised in such a manner that there is a long harmonious series. It has been envisaged to further improve the comparability of the GDP by taking into account the methodological differences in the compilation of the accounts.
AFRISTAT Experts have, in addition, designed a benchmark of the ERETES module, which is used to initiate future users in its various functionality. This benchmark was particularly used for the training of national Accountants (Abidjan, 1997 and 1999; Munich 1998), the training of trainers in macroeconomics (Abidjan 1999) and was presented to Technical Assistants of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and to the National Accountants of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (Bamako 1999). AFRISTAT Experts further participated in several meetings of the ERETES Steering Committee.
Finally, AFRISTAT National Accountants intervened during several seminars and meetings: seminar on statistical convergence (Ouagadougou, 1999) Meeting of Public Finance Experts (Ouagadougou 1999) ACN11 (Paris 2000), workshops on National Accounts (Addis-Ababa 1997-2000). They also represented AFRISTAT in Classifications Experts Meetings (New York, 1999, Addis-Ababa 2000).
3. Classifications
4.4.1. Objectives
The prerequisites for the comparability of statistical data within AFRISTAT Member States include, first and foremost, the use of common classifications. Thus, the AFRISTAT Directorate General had started to study to which extent the main classifications used in the compilation of statistics could be harmonised.
In order to ensure comparability both at the regional and world level and comply with international recommendations, it was decided to rely, as much as possible, on the classifications developed in the international institutions namely the United Nations and its different agencies, the European Union etc.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
In 1997 AFRISTAT Experts visited most AFRISTAT Member States in order to collect as much information as possible on the classifications used in the Member States. A working group bringing together Experts of Member States and regional integration agencies of each sub-region proposed that as a matter of priority the classifications of activities and products should be harmonised.
These activities and products classifications were designed by a working group that was headed by the AFRISTAT Directorate General and the regional integration agencies (some 40 persons in total). A special emphasis was put on the need for consultation as broad as possible in each State within just as outside the INS. The working group, with representatives from INSEE and EUROSTAT met six times to design the activity nomenclature of AFRISTAT Member States (NAEMA) and the products nomenclature of AFRISTAT Member States (NOPEMA).
The activity nomenclature of AFRISTAT Member States is based on ISIC, rev 3. A number of points however required special attention:
• The diversity of the formal and informal corporate activities undertaken is less extensive in African economies than in other regions of the world, particularly in developed countries;
• The primary sector – agriculture, livestock, fishery – plays a very significant role in the economic activity, it contributes by roughly 50% to GDP formation;
• Manufacturing activities are underdeveloped.
Thus, it was decided to increase the number of elementary categories in the primary sector, reduce significantly their number for manufacturing activities, and finally reduce generally the number of elementary categories.
The activity nomenclature comprises four levels: it contains exactly the 17 sections (1 digit) and 60 divisions (Codified on 2 digits) of the ISIC. The lower levels are subject to a number of adaptations in order to take into account the peculiarities of African economies. Thus the nomenclature comprises 147 3-digit groups, which are most often identical to those of the CITI. The exceptions concern the aggregation of the CITI groups, when the latter appeared too detailed relatively to the economy of Member States, and the break-ups of ISIC groups, for a better breakdown of important African activities particularly in Agriculture.
With regard to the products nomenclature, it is structured as the activity nomenclature, in other words, the products (goods or services are grouped according to the activity of origin. It therefore covers the 4 levels (sections, divisions, groups and classes) of the activity nomenclature. It adds a supplementary level of codified detail with the assistance of a 5-digit corresponding to the 574 categories selected.
The AFRISTAT Management Committee and Scientific Council approved the activity and products classifications project.
The rules concerning its adoption were approved in the AFRISTAT Council of Ministers Meeting on 19 September 2000 in Paris.
The activity and products classifications are being implemented in the AFRISTAT Member States with effect from 1 January 2001. They must, as from this date, be utilised for the collection and dissemination of statistical information.
Member States will use the activity and products nomenclature anytime that it is applicable for all their statistical operations such as censuses, statistical surveys structuring of accounting or administrative data, etc. The comparison of statistical data will be immediate in most cases and the checking the consistency of data will be easier. Thereafter there will be greater clarity and greater transparency of data. The work of both the producers and the users of statistical data will be facilitated.
A certain degree of flexibility can be envisaged for the implementation of the harmonised nomenclature in Member States. It is thus possible for each State to develop a more comprehensive activity nomenclature for its needs provided that the positions created are sub-items of the existing positions in the harmonised nomenclature. These adaptations must be done under the control of AFRISTAT.
The technical group is responsible for ensuring the follow-up of the activity and products nomenclature. This includes in particular:
• The interpretation of classifications;
• The changes to be made in the explanatory notes;
• Revision of classifications particularly after a revision of the international reference classifications
4. Macroeconomics and Analysis of the Current Economic Context
1. Objectives
The objective is to assist the NSOs to design and disseminate regular economic situation information notes, make an analysis of the short term projection and where necessary, make use of an adapted model for an analysis of the economy of each country.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
The activities in this field began in the year 2000 with the arrival of the Expert in macroeconomics.
Two seminars on the analysis of the economic situation and economic forecasts were organised in 2000 to mark the beginning of AFRISTAT’s activity in this area. They made it possible to acquaint participants with the work undertaken in Member States. A pilot work will be carried out for Mali on the economic situation note, which could serve as a model for the other Member States.
The action envisaged for the future, namely assisting in the drafting of economic situation notes according to a model which is both harmonised but adapted to the reality of each State and promoting a harmonised method of analysis of economic forecast, will ensure a better understanding of the economies of Member States and will improve the analysis made at the level of the States and the economic integration zones to which they belong.
5. Price Statistics and Household Surveys
The two groups were brought together here because the activities were mainly conducted under projects concerning the establishment of a harmonised consumer price index in Member States. These projects often include two components namely a “Price” component and a “Survey” component.
It should be mentioned that the activities conducted in these fields began even before the inception of AFRISTAT since the two Price statistics and Household survey Experts intervened in the UEMOA Prices Project before joining AFRISTAT. This project, which was established in 1994 at the initiative of the Central Bank of West African States, was financed jointly by France and the European Union. The following Institutions participate actively in the project: the INS of UEMOA Member States, the INSEE, EUROSTAT, EUROCOST12 and AFRISTAT.
1. Objectives
The field of prices was considered since the beginning of AFRISTAT activities as one of the fields of priority intervention. The availability of reliable and up-to-date information on the trend in consumer price index is a crucial element of the economic policy, particularly in its objectives of checking inflation and ensuring monetary stability. Within the context of economic and monetary integration, the availability of harmonised price statistics between the different countries is also an extremely useful information element for the co-ordination and multilateral supervision of economic policies.
The devaluation of the CFA Franc in January 1994 showed the weakness of the existing tools; lack of precision in the definition of products and the random updating of the list of products: different classifications from country to country and incompatibility with the United Nations System of National Accounts (SNA); non representative sampling and an inadequate number of statements, more or less significant obsolescence of the weighting system; methodological errors in the compilation of indices.
The objective of AFRISTAT’s mission was to place at the disposal of AFRISTAT Member States harmonised tools for the gathering, processing and analysis of data concerning both prices and household surveys. It is also characterised by a significant component namely, the training of the INS executives so that the latter can manage and master the new techniques, which were proposed to them.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
The detailed activities as per geographical grouping and country are presented in the following paragraph.
UEMOA Member States.
← UEMOA Prices Project
The Directorate General of AFRISTAT participated actively in the execution of the UEMOA consumer price index project, which reached its final phase in December 1997 with the official adoption of the Harmonised Consumer Price Index (HCPI by the UEMOA Council of Ministers.
During 1996 to 1998, the main activities undertaken by the AFRISTAT Directorate General were:
• Monitoring of the setting-up the harmonised price indices in 7 UEMOA Member States13.
← Through regular telephone calls, by fax or electronic mail.
← By technical support missions (numbering thirteen to six (countries)
← By the drafting of technical notes sent to the INS;
• The organisation with EuroCost of four seminars on the Price of the Project component;
• The organisation in Bamako of three seminars for data of household expenditures surveys;
• The monitoring of the development of the CHAPO14 software.
← By organising in Bamako a pilot site to test the software,
← By verifying the conformity of the various versions delivered with the computer specifications;
• The drafting of a methodological note at the request of the UEMOA Commission for the computation of the UEMOA price index.
• The drafting of the publication “Harmonised consumer price index of the UEMOA Member States: Theory and Practice”.
• The follow-up to the national publications of the results of surveys on expenditure;
• Participation in several co-ordination meetings of the UEMOA Price Project.
Since February 1998, the NSO of 7 States have been producing regularly the harmonised index and publishing the results in a four page note on the 10th of each month. The publications containing the results of the surveys on the 1996 household expenditure are available for 6 of the 7 countries concerned.
← Other activities in the UEMOA Member States
At the request of the UEMOA Commission, the AFRISTAT Directorate General evaluated in October 1998 the mechanisms for the production of the HCPI of Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. It also participated in the Working Group, which is preparing the meetings of the HCPI Monitoring Committee.
The Directorate General of AFRISTAT organised in Bamako in November 1999 and November 2000 training seminars in the analysis of the trend of price indices. Participants in the seminar submitted recommendations aimed at making the IHPC data more reliable and adopted harmonised tools for the analysis of price indices.
A project for the establishment of a harmonised consumer price index in Guinea-Bissau was prepared during a mission in April 2000. This project must begin in 2001 under the PARSTAT Programme.
CEMAC Member States
← CEMAC Prices Project.
The first phase of the project took place during the first half of 1998 in the form of two seminars and a mission to each of the six countries by AFRISTAT Price Statistics and Household Surveys Experts. During the first Seminar held in Douala, the UEMOA Prices Project experience was presented and the modalities for the conduct of Phase 1 were adopted. Following the evaluation and Phase 2 preparation missions, the second seminar, held in Libreville, made it possible to adopt the modalities for the harmonised price indices and household expenditure surveys.
During 1999 and 2000, the main activities carried out by the AFRISTAT Directorate General were:
• Monitoring of the collection of basic prices in the six CEMAC Countries,
← Through regular telephone calls, fax or electronic mail,
← Through technical support missions (three to each of the six countries)
← Through the preparation of several technical notes sent to the INS.
• Organisation and running of three seminars (in Bangui, Douala and Brazzaville) on the “Price” component of the Project for the training in the harmonised index methodology and the computer application of CHAPO.
• Organisation in Libreville of a training seminar in ARIEL + PLUS, household surveys data processing software,
• Technical support to household expenditure survey in Cameroon and the preparation of the survey in Chad.
As from early 2001, the basic price concerning the year 2000 will be available for the nine towns selected and the price collection will continue according to the methodology adopted by the six CEMAC Member States. The expenditure survey will continue according to the methodology adopted by the six CEMAC Member States. The expenditure survey was conducted in Cameroon on the national budget, and is planed in Chad with World Bank financing. As at 31 December 2000, the financing had not yet been secured for the survey in the four other Member States.
As soon as the results of the household expenditure surveys make it possible to obtain the weighting system, the harmonised index could be calculated in each of the six States.
← Other activities in the CEMAC Member States
At the request of the NSO of Gabon, the AFRISTAT price statistics Expert undertook a technical assistance mission to Libreville in December 1997 to provide technical support assistance for the improvement of the consumer price index. The reviewed price index will be replaced by the harmonised index.
A similar operation was undertaken for Equatorial Guinea in December 2000.
Other AFRISTAT Member States
At the request of the INS of Guinea and Mauritania, the AFRISTAT Directorate General undertook in November 1998 and January 1999 an evaluation of price indices and the introduction of a harmonised index. The lack of financing delayed the execution of these projects.
At the request of the INS of the Comoros, the AFRISTAT Directorate General undertook a mission to Moroni in December 1998 to identify the price index methodological weaknesses, describe the existing index for the purposes of the survey, prepare and programme the future actions and draft a project document. Following this mission, a modernised index was established with the year 1999 as base.
Other African States
With financing from the French co-operation, the AFRISTAT price statistics Expert undertook from 1996 to 1998 three technical assistance missions to Madagascar for the establishment of a national consumer price index.
With World Bank financing, the AFRISTAT Directorate General provided, in 1998 and 1999 a technical assistance to the NSO of Djibouti for the design of the first household consumer price index. The price statistics and household survey Experts visited Djibouti two times and two NSO executives worked for two weeks in Bamako. Since May 1999, the price index of this country has been published each month.
Other Institutions
The Directorate General of AFRISTAT was approached by the Agency for Air Navigation Security in Africa and Madagascar (ASECNA) in January 1999, to carry out in conjunction with EuroCost a study on the purchasing power parity between the 15 ASECNA Member States. AFRISTAT co-ordinated the data collection, which was carried out by Consultants recruited within the NSO of each Member State.
At the request of the World Bank, the Directorate General of AFRISTAT organised in June 2000 a workshop on budget-consumption surveys. This workshop, which was headed by World Bank and AFRISTAT Experts, brought together representatives from Guinea, Mali and Senegal. These three countries were preparing surveys with similar objectives and the seminar made it possible to harmonise the methodologies used.
Publications - Dissemination
The Directorate General of AFRISTAT prepared on behalf of the UEMOA Commission and with the collaboration of the INSEE and EuroCost two publications within the framework of the UEMOA Prices Project: “Harmonised consumer price index of UEMOA Member States: Theory and Practice” and “Consumption and Employment in the capitals of UEMOA Member States”.
It also published a study titled: “Price trends in AFRISTAT Member States from 1970 to 1999”. This study provides an overview of the consumer price index from 1970 to 1999 in the seventeen Member States. The publication comprises four sections namely the price trend in all the Member States, the price trend per State, comparison of the prices of a number of products in 1998, comparison of the 1999 price index weightings.
6. Agricultural Statistics
1. Objectives
The general objective of AFRISTAT in the field of agricultural statistics is to assist Member States to develop efficient agricultural information systems.
The strategy adopted to reach this objective relies on the development of a close collaboration with the other agencies operating in the field of agricultural statistics particularly with the FAO and the Inter State Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), with a view to reaching complementarity and synergy of actions in favour of Member States.
This strategy comprises the following areas:
• Contributing to the harmonisation of concepts and methods used and the design of agricultural statistical development programmes;
• Contributing to the organisation of the continuous training of agricultural statisticians;
• Undertaking methodological research in order to put at the disposal of the States the methodological surveys in the areas where there is none, with a view to contributing to broaden the coverage of the production of agricultural statistics in Member States;
• Providing, on their request, a technical support to the agricultural statistics services of Member States and the sub-regional organisations.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
Work in the field of agricultural statistics started in February 1998 with the arrival of the Expert. Ever since this date, the actions undertaken and the main output are as follows:
The development of working relations with international and regional organisations
At the start of AFRISTAT activities in the field of agricultural statistics, the focus was on the co-ordination of the activities of the Institution with those, which were also operating in the field. Thus missions were organised at the statistical division of the FAO, at the Secretariat of CILSS at the Headquarters of the Livestock and Meat Economic Community (CEBV) and UEMOA. An ECOWAS mission to Bamako also made it possible to exchange views on the activities of the two institutions on the issue.
Harmonisation of concepts and methods and the design of agricultural statistical development programmes
During the first years, activities in the field consisted especially in reviewing the agricultural statistics situation in Member States. To this end, a survey was conducted at the competent national administrations to identify all the sources of agricultural and food information in the State. Detailed results of this survey are available on publication on the organisation of agricultural and food information systems in AFRISTAT Member States.
The second phase of this exercise consisted in reviewing the methodologies used in Member States for the collection of agricultural statistics with a view to commencing activities concerning the harmonisation of methodologies, concepts and classifications. The filling of a questionnaire by the departments concerned in the States made it possible to cover the field of plant production statistics and that of livestock statistics. Summary reports are being prepared which will make it possible to present a comprehensive view of the methodologies applied and the technical problems relating thereto. These documents will make it possible to start on a consultation with the various partners for the formulation of agricultural statistical development programmes.
Continuous training of Agricultural Statisticians
The continuous training activities in agricultural statistics consisted in the organisation of workshops and seminars by the Directorate General of AFRISTAT and in the participation in workshops organised by other institutions.
In collaboration with the FAO, two workshops were organised by AFRISTAT in Bamako for African Agricultural Statisticians.
These include:
• Training workshop in the compilation of agricultural and food products availability and utilisation and food balances in April 1999;
• Workshop on food crop harvest forecast methods in May 2000.
AFRISTAT Directorate General participated in statisticians training workshops organised by other institutions and contributed in conducting them:
These included:
• A round table on current trends in agricultural surveys in Africa organised by the FAO in Abidjan in March 2000;
• Training of trainers workshop for the dissemination of the framework for the development of environmental statistics (CDSE) and the integrated accounts system of the economy and the environment organised by the ECA in Addis Ababa from 30 October to 6 November 1999.
Methodological Research
Among the fields for which there were no tested methodologies for the collection of statistics (fruits, market garden production, root plants, transhumance, etc.), AFRISTAT chose to work, to begin with, on the estimate of fruit production and market garden production.
In this connection, a method for the estimation of fruit production was designed, tested in Mali and assessed; and a publication will be disseminated to assist the agricultural statisticians to design and carry out the same type of survey.
Another research work is underway to propose a methodology for surveys on market gardening.
The technical support to the agricultural statistical services of Member States and to sub-regional organisations
Mauritania received assistance in the design of the methodology of household and agro-pastoral farming survey (EMEAP) of 1998, as well as for the evaluation of the agricultural survey mechanism, the identification, and the evaluation of priority action in agricultural statistics for the next five years.
The Economic Community of Livestock, Meat and Fish Resources received assistance from the AFRISTAT Directorate General for the establishment of an information system on livestock and meat trade. The activities for the establishment of this system were identified and a project document drafted.
7. Employment and Informal Sector
1. Objectives
The field of employment and the informal sector is important for AFRISTAT Member States in two respects. The informal sector has been found to be an important provider of employment and all the economic policies must include this parameter; in addition, the contribution of the informal sector to the GDP is significant sometimes exceeding that of the modern sector. However, at the creation of AFRISTAT, pertinent, reliable and up-to-date information in this field were particularly rare.
To this end, the general objective of this field is to contribute to assist Member States to establish information systems on employment and the informal sector more particularly in the urban area and to integrate effectively the contribution of the informal sector to the estimation of GDP.
More precisely, the specific objectives to be reached are as follows:
• Assisting Member States to adopt the harmonised concepts concerning employment and the informal sector with a view to producing comparable statistics at the sub-regional level and the international level.
• Assisting Member States in the design, implementation, processing and analysis of specific surveys and the informal sector and employment in urban areas; and examining with the Member States ways and means to extend such surveys to rural areas;
• Assisting Member States to integrate effectively the employment dimension in the other household surveys;
• Preparing, in co-operation with the National Accountants, harmonised methods of estimating the value added of the informal sector with a view to its integration into the macro-economic aggregates.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
The activities in this field began with the arrival of the Expert in February 199815. They were to be undertaken within the framework of the regional statistical support programme (PARSTAT) of the UEMOA Commission and CEMAC biennial statistical programme (PSB). The surveys planned under the PARSTAT have not yet started because of the great delay recorded by this programme. A number of actions were however undertaken.
Assessment of the existing situation
AFRISTAT has embarked on the collection of documentation and files of the surveys undertaken in the Member States in the fields of employment and the informal sector. Following the analysis of the existing documentation and the assessment of the various files, an assessment was made of the existing situation in the area of information systems in this field.
It emerged from the assessment that few AFRISTAT Member States have true information systems on employment. Only one country, namely Benin has been carrying out annually an employment survey in the urban area for nearly 10 years now. This survey, which covered two cities from 1990 to 1983 and 4 cities from 1994, was to a large extent financed by a development partner. Benin’s experience shows that technically, the establishment of a socio-economic information system on households with, as base, an annual survey on employment is a reasonable objective for AFRISTAT Member States.
In the informal sector, few countries undertook surveys on a national scale and those, which have already been undertaken, are for most of them, very old.
With regard to concepts, in the field of employment, the international standards are not always respected. With regard to the informal sector, the concepts used are very divergent from one country to another.
Harmonisation of the concepts on employment and the informal sector
Following the previous observation concerning the multiplicity and divergence of concepts in AFRISTAT Member States and non compliance with international standards; a Manual of harmonised concepts on employment and the informal sector was drawn up in 1999 by the Directorate General in collaboration with DIAL, a research centre in development economics based in Paris. This manual designed originally within the framework of PARSTAT aims at assisting all those interested in specific statistical operations on employment and the informal sector or which combine employment and the informal sector to be based on concepts adapted to the context of the developing countries. The concepts proposed are in harmony with the 1-2-316 type of survey methodology. The manual was disseminated extensively in all the Member States with a view to be used as working tool of national officials operating in these fields.
Support to the national statistical systems
Alongside the PARSTAT programmes and the PSB, support was provided by the AFRISTAT Directorate General to a number of countries in the design and implementation of surveys on employment and the informal sector. The Office of Employment and Training of Mali (OEF) thus received a sustained support for the design and conduct of the employment survey. This agency also received other forms of methodological support on a lower scale, particularly within the framework of surveys on the request for training in handicraft.
The Statistics, Economic and Demographic studies Department of Chad, which is going to conduct a national survey on consumption and the informal sector also received support. The employment and informal sector dimensions were thus taken into account within the framework of this survey which objective is in particular to ensure the compilation of a poverty profile. In this particular case, the wealth of information on employment integrated into this survey should make it possible to better understand the factors responsible for poverty. With regard to information on the informal sector, they should make it possible to study its mode of functioning and better estimate the value added of the sector.
Other Activities
The weakness of the information systems on employment is also a matter for the ILO. This Institution undertook in 1999, through its multidisciplinary teams in Central Africa in Yaounde (EMAC) and in Sub-Saharan Africa in Dakar (EMAC), to support the countries in this field. Since these concerns corresponded with those of AFRISTAT a co-operation was started. The AFRISTAT Directorate General has thus contributed to providing an inventory of activities in this area. AFRISTAT’s contribution in this field was made through presentations during the two seminars organised in Douala (Cameroun) by EMAC and in Dakar (Senegal) by EMAS.
Training was an important dimension of the activities in the fields of employment and the informal sector. A co-operation was thus established with the initial training and continuous training institutions. With regard to initial training, it is the Abidjan National Statistical and Applied Economics Institute (ENSEA) which undertook to develop in its programmes courses which make it possible to establish a bridge between the theory learnt at school and field practice. To this end, a course was prepared for second year Engineering Statistician Economist students (ISE). This course, which deals with issues concerning works supply and surveys which make it possible to assess corresponding theoretical model s. The course also deals with issues relating to poverty.
With regard to continuous training, collaboration was established with the INSEE training Centre at Libourne (CEFIL) where an AFRISTAT Expert dispensed courses for Sub-Saharan African Experts on employment and informal sector statistics.
8. Poverty
1. Objectives
During the works that preceded the creation of AFRISTAT the focus was not sufficiently put on issues of poverty. Indeed, the priority of the structural adjustment programmes in this era was the reduction of macroeconomic imbalances. However, the observatory adapted itself to the new factor since as in recent years poverty issues were identified as core development problems. The activities in this field began in November 1998. The objectives set out in this field are as follows:
• Integrating issues relating to poverty and the conditions of living in households into PROSMIC.
• Assisting the countries to better use the existing data for a better understanding of the factors responsible for poverty;
• Assisting the countries to harmonise their data collection methods and their approaches to the analysis of poverty in order to ensure comparisons;
• Assisting Member States, which might so request, to design, carry out, examine and analyse surveys on poverty.
4.9.2 Actions undertaken and main output
Analysing the current situation
The assessment of the poverty information systems was prepared following missions to the five countries and the exploitation of the existing documentation. The following observations were made.
Just as in the field of employment, there are no effective information systems on living conditions households and poverty. The surveys were carried out according to the availability of financing. Furthermore, as a matter of utmost rigour, these two sub-systems (employment and poverty) should form part of a comprehensive whole concerning socio-economic information on households. The lack of an information system makes it difficult to monitor effectively the living conditions of households. Furthermore, even if the countries developed experience in the conduct of surveys, serious problems still remain.
At the conceptual level, several questions are poorly treated in the survey. First of all, it was observed there was a lack of key variables in a number of surveys (market, housing, prices etc), which limits the analyses considerably. Also, the concepts are not always mastered particularly concepts concerning employment, and the classifications are not properly utilised. Furthermore, with regard to sampling, the bases of the sampling, which are derived from the population censuses are generally old and are not always updated at the time of the surveys.
The analysis for their part, are made with considerable delay and are not quite thorough.
Taking into account of the monitoring of the living conditions of households in the PROSMIC
The first response to the questions enumerated above was the integration of a household living conditions and poverty component into the PROSMIC. The programme was designed in such a manner that the concerns can be addressed. However, since PROSMIC is only a reference framework, two projects were prepared and submitted for financing by the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) and the World Bank.
Using existing data
Even if on the whole, the monitoring of the Living conditions of households is difficult in AFRISTAT Member States since the data from recent surveys are not always available when needed, there is a large volume of data, which are under exploited particularly in a longitudinal perspective. Enhancement of existing data has therefore been undertaken in the countries. Thus, a study titled “Poverty, inequalities of income and household consumption in Bamako, Cotonou and Dakar” was conducted by AFRISTAT in 1999. The objective of the study was to use as a basis for further analysis the data of surveys conducted in the capitals of the UEMOA Member States in 1996.
Using the same data, the AFRISTAT Directorate General conducted two other studies jointly with DIAL. The first was titled “International comparisons of poverty: the case of the UEMOA countries” The second was titled “Poverty in West Africa and Madagascar: prospects for comparison” and was based on the same data and those of the “1-2-3” type of survey conducted in Madagascar. AFRISTAT Directorate General also participated in the Mali component of the study on urban poverty in West Africa. The World Bank assigned the study to DIAL. It used all existing survey data in Mali, namely a budget consumption type of survey, population surveys, and health surveys (EDS). All these exercises tend to show that the surveys can provide useful information several years after are carried out.
Using existing data in this case has two objectives namely, on analytical objective, which is to contribute to dialogue on the issue, that is, poverty, and assist in the formulation of policies; and a statistical objective since the comparison of several surveys makes it possible to identify the inadequacies and improve the methodologies used.
These data enhancement exercises were also carried out through the supervision of ENSEA trainees in Abidjan who worked on surveys in different countries.
Support to the national statistical systems.
With regard to direct support to the countries, two Member States Chad and Cameroon approached the Directorate General of AFRISTAT in connection with surveys on poverty. The contribution of the observatory was initially at the conceptual level. In particular, it involved the design of surveys, which will make it possible to understand the factors responsible for poverty and not just to produce indicators. Since these projects are underway, this contribution should continue, at the level of the implementation and analysis. It should be pointed out that in this field also, the Directorate General of AFRISTAT has co-operated with the other institutions, which operate in the countries, the World Bank in particular.
Other Activities
Just as in the field of employment and the informal sector, activities in the training sector were important. An AFRISTAT Expert dispensed a course at the Munich Centre for social and environmental policy. Other courses were dispensed at the request of the German Co-operation within the framework of specific projects and CEFIL. These training sessions mainly concerned the techniques for the measurement and analysis of poverty.
Issues relating to harmonisation were also tackled. It however appeared that they could only be treated effectively through the projects (see above the documents submitted to the ACBF and the World Bank). The main actions concern issues in the harmonisation of information systems, and harmonisation techniques for poverty standard measurements, which are extremely divergent and the types of publications to be produced in this field. Other actions are envisaged under these projects, particularly the continuous training in the field of data production and the analysis of the issues of poverty through access to the documentation and the establishment of an Experts’ network.
10. Enterprise Statistics
Enterprise statistics play an important role in the monitoring of economic activity (particularly in the monitoring of the short term economic situation) and serve as input in various review exercises such as national accounts.
The establishment of a proper information system on enterprises should combine in an optimum manner, the use of administrative sources (tax declarations with their statistical annexes) with structural surveys (industrial surveys, sampling survey) and economic situation surveys (industrial production, opinions of heads of enterprises etc..). Even though the cost of such on information system is relatively low as compared to the household information systems, Member States do not always devote the necessary attention to it.
The Enterprise statistician arrived only at the end of 1999 and was instantly mobilised to strengthen the team of National Accountants whose schedule was particularly tight. This explains why few activities were undertaken in this field with the exception of the assessment of the existing situation, which is underway.
In future, the following specific objectives are targeted:
• Assisting Member States to prepare a catalogue of enterprises to be updated regularly;
• Designing the standard tools for the exploitation and processing of statistical and tax declarations of enterprises for the monitoring of the activities of enterprises in the modern sector and in national accounting;
• Define and establish a system adapted for the production of statistical information on the activities of small and medium scale enterprises as a supplement to the existing operation on major enterprises and on the informal sector.
11. Computer Activities and Data Processing
Activities in this field began in March 1998 with the arrival of two Statisticians-Data Processing Experts.
4.11.1. Objectives
The general objectives of AFRISTAT in the field of data processing are as follows:
• Designing for Member States a common methodology for the collection and processing of basic statistical information;
• Improving the dissemination and use of statistical information in all Member States particularly by developing data bases accessible to the different economic and social agents in the region;
• Providing support to the activities of National Statistical Institutes of Member States in the field particularly through training.
The specific objectives targeted are as follows:
• Contributing to the establishment of computer tools and ensuring the training of National Experts for the use and maintenance of the developed tools. Two tools are mainly concerned namely: the ERETES module for the compilation of national accounts and the CHAPO computer application for the computation of price indices;
• Establishing statistical information processing, archiving and dissemination tools establishing regional databases for the collection and dissemination of statistical information and assisting Member States to establish national data bases;
• Providing a technical support and assistance to the National Statistical Offices of Member States on their request.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
Data processing activities fall into two major categories namely: the capacity building of the Directorate General of AFRISTAT, and technical assistance to Member States.
Capacity building of AFRISTAT Directorate General
The objective is to provide the Directorate General with technical and Managerial capacities and efficient computer equipment to enable it to carry out its activities effectively.
The main activities concern:
• The procurement of equipment: the computer pool of the AFRISTAT Directorate General today has 21 office and 6 hand-held computers. Each staff member has an office microcomputer. The hand-held computers are used during missions and seminars;
• The installation of a computer network: in March 2000, a computer network was installed at he AFRISTAT headquarters. This network has been functioning satisfactorily. It ensures a better exchange of information, an optimum management of documents, the sharing of resources (printers, disks, engravers etc) and data as well as communication between the users. It is a network with a Windows NT server and stations operating under Windows 95/98;
• The installation of an individual electronic mail: since November 2000, each staff member has an individual address. This makes it possible to ensure an effective internal communication (serving as an internal message system) and with the outside world, and direct and rapid communication between Experts on special problems;
• The establishment of regional databases at AFRISTAT. The reflections began in May 1999 with study missions to INSEE, OECD and EUROSTAT and are continuing actively;
• The technical support to the staff of the various departments and services of AFRISTAT by a daily support in the resolution of problems related to data processing and office automation, to the organisation of seminars (rental and installation of equipment) and the training in specialised software.
Technical assistance to Member States
The technical assistance includes the following actions:
• Data processing and computer issues activities during ERETES module identification and installation missions:
← In West Africa, these missions concerned Côte d’Ivoire, (1998), Mali (1998 and 1999) and Mauritania (1999 and 2000)
← In Central Africa, missions were undertaken to Cameroon and Central African Republic in order to ensure the shift from the prototype version to the so-called industrial version of the ERETES module. It should be pointed out that these last two countries had participated from the outset in the design of ERETES Computer tool by serving as test sites.
• The installation and maintenance of the CHAPO computer applications: in this connection, several missions took place either to repair or reinstall the CHAPO sites of UEMOA Member States and also to install new sites particularly within the framework of the CEMAC Prices Project. More precisely, these interventions included:
← The installation of the CHAPO Computer application in the six CEMAC Member States under the Prices Project;
← Reinstallation of the CHAPO computer application in Niger following incident which occurred on the initial computer;
← The reinstallation of the CHAPO computer application in Mali on a new equipment procured first of all by Mali then on another supplied by the UEMOA Commission following the recommendations of the HCPI monitoring Committee and on the request of the UEMOA Commission;
• Participation in the running of training seminars organised by AFRISTAT both to provide a logistic support and to address subjects such as the processing of survey data, archiving of data, the choice of the data processing software, etc. Only two technical seminars with a strong data processing component will be mentioned here:
← Training seminar in the exploitation of expenditure surveys with the ARIEL + PLUS software for officials of expenditure survey departments within the framework of the CEMAC Prices Project (Libreville, April 1999).
← Training seminar in the utilisation of the CHAPO Computer application for Central Africa for officials of the price departments of the CEMAC Member States (Douala, May 2000 and Brazzaville, November 2000)
• Specific assistance: on the request of the statistical and economic studies Department of Gabon, the Computer statisticians undertook in 1998, an audit mission of the computer departments of the DGSEE and proposed an organisation which would increasingly involve Computer Engineers in the activities of the different departments.
11. Documentation and Data Dissemination
1. Objectives
Setting up a large stock of documents and an optimum dissemination of information is part of AFRISTAT’s objectives. In the field of communication, the objective is to assist the Member States to have modem statistical and economic documentation storage and dissemination facilities.
With regard to dissemination, the general objective is to promote the utilisation in Member States of new information and communication technologies in order to ensure easy access to economic and social information for the economic and social agents and the citizens.
2. Actions Undertaken and Main Output
Documentation
The Directorate General of AFRISTAT has gradually established a documentation centre. The setting up of the documentary stock was done through the collection of the publications of the National statistical institutes of Member States, the INSEE, EUROSTAT and other organisations, through grouped purchases and subscriptions to various magazines. The Library also manages AFRISTAT publications as well as all the technical documents prepared by the Experts.
The management of the Library is ensured by an experienced archivist who set up various databases under the CDS/ISSLS documentary management software under Windows or WINISLS developed and distributed by UNESCO.
The various data bases created include:
• AFRIST-bibliographical database containing the recent documents published by the INS.
• ARC-base including the oldest publication (1940 to 1980) on the Member States. This concerns documents existing only in the archives, and which are unavailable on the shelves of the documentation centre
• RAPMIS which contains all the mission reports of AFRISTAT Experts;
• DOC, which brings together the other documents published by AFRISTAT during the meetings, workshops and seminars.
A bulletin containing summaries of the new acquisitions is published monthly and disseminated among the staff.
Dissemination of Information
AFRISTAT has two main information and works dissemination media namely paper publications and electronic publications.
Paper publications
AFRISTAT Directorate General publishes a number of documents. The periodic publications should be distinguished from specific publications.
The observatory publishes regularly (quarterly since the 12th edition) an information bulletin titled “AFRISTAT Newsletter “ The last edition namely edition 15 was published in January 2001. It provides information concerning the past quarter on AFRISTAT activities, the activities of the Directorate General, the international statistical activities and the news from the INS, as well as an agenda of meetings involving AFRISTAT and the Member States.
With regard to the results of the works and research, there are four series of publications namely: Methodology, Studies, Results (no document has yet been published in this series) and Directories. The documents published since 1996 feature in annex 5.
Electronic publications
The information on statistical developments, on AFRISTAT activities and the results of its operations are disseminated on its web site and will also be disseminated by CD-ROM.
Web site
The web site, developed by the AFRISTAT Directorate General with the assistance of INSEE and hosted in Bamako, has been accessible to the public since June 2000. It should be pointed out that an experimental version whose address was communicated to only the national statistical institutes of Member States and to a number of resource persons was already installed in July 1999. The Directorate General has updated the information regularly, in particular with regard to short-term economic statistics (consumer price, prices of raw materials, exchange rate and industrial production).
AFRISTAT Web Site comprises the following items:
• A presentation of AFRISTAT: the Treaty establishing AFRISTAT, the organs of AFRISTAT, the headquarters agreement between AFRISTAT and the Government of Mali, the Directorate General structures.
• Activities; the activity reports of the Directorate General since the beginning of activities, the reports of statutory meetings (Council of Ministers, Management Committee and Scientific Council) the reports of the seminars and technical workshops;
• Publications: AFRISTAT Newsletter, other AFRISTAT publications (the Directories Studies, Methods and Results series) and some unclassified publications, and the thematic catalogue of AFRISTAT documentation Centre;
• The NSO of AFRISTAT Member States: the structures of each NSO in Member States and its publications;
• The other national actors: the list of actors other than the NSO in the national statistical systems and the list of their publications;
• The statistical data of AFRISTAT Member States, presented per country and per area for the period 1990 to 1999.
• Updates: the most recent information on key situational statistics, the publications, meetings and seminars and statistical news.
CD-ROM
Some results of AFRISTAT operations and basic documents of seminars have been stored on CD-ROM to ensure a more extensive dissemination of these documents.
Thus, the classifications of activities and reports adopted by the Council of Ministers of 19 September 2000 will be available on CD-ROM and disseminated extensively to the National Statistical Offices in Member States.
Promotion of the use of new information and communication technologies in Member States
The AFRISTAT Directorate General participated in two seminars on the filing of archives data on CD-ROM organised by the World Bank to facilitate the dissemination of survey results, as well as ensure access to data and improve the filing of these information. The first seminar, which was held in Bamako in May 1999, targeted the surveys on household expenditures conducted in 1996 in connection with the UMOA Prices Project. The second one, which was held in Abidjan in November 2000, dealt with agricultural inventories and surveys and during these seminars, each participant produced one CD-ROM on a survey or a census. This technique would be useful for other surveys (past and future).
Furthermore, the Directorate General of AFRISTAT began the reflection work for two projects aimed at improving the dissemination of information.
Setting up Web sites in NSO
The Directorate General drafted the terms of reference of a project aimed at assisting each NSO to develop its web site. The assistance, which it will provide will include the technical aspects of development, as well as a proposal for a minimum architecture to be put in place. This strategy will make it possible to ensure coherence between the information published on the AFRISTAT site (aggregate and comparative data between countries) and on the INS sites (more comprehensive and specific information). It has been envisaged to include numerous links between the Sites in order to create a comprehensive information network. The search for financing is underway.
Technical Assistance for setting up databases
It has been envisaged to establish regional bases within the AFRISTAT Head Office and to assist each NSO to provide for itself national databases which will make it possible to store statistics in a more structured and reliable environment and thus improve the dissemination and use of this information. The specification of needs for the establishment of the regional database at AFRISTAT is currently being finalised. The objective is that henceforth, INS should be consulted widely for an assessment of all of their needs, and thereafter to draft a project document to present to donors.
5. BRIEF ANALYSIS OF ACTIONS AND PERFORMANCE
During the 5-year period from 1996 to 2000, AFRISTAT Directorate General maintained a regular rhythm of activities in spite of the problems and difficulties which were encountered, and which will be presented in detail in item 6 in this document.
1. Human Resources
Human resources made available at Experts’ level reached up to 437 man-months, which represents an annual average of 87.4 man-months, with a minimum of 26 man-months in 1996 and a maximum of 132 man-months in year 2000 when the 12 Experts had all assumed duty.
5.2 Missions
During the review period, the total number of missions undertaken by Experts was 2267 expert-days. The break down by countries or institutions indicates that:
• A notably equal number of mission days were allocated to each of the two sub-regional institutions, i.e. CEMAC and UEMOA. ;
• Missions days for the 8 Member States of UEMOA represent 21% of the total number of days as against 16% for the 6 Member States of CEMAC;
• The NSO in Mauritania was allocated the highest number of mission days mainly because of the ERETES module installation project financed by the French Co-operation services; the next beneficiaries are the NSO in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire and Mali.
The NSO which received the lowest number of mission days are those in Guinea and Guinea Bissau because of their late admission into the scheme, and in the Comoros.
The highest number of missions was undertaken in the areas of national accounts (29%), management and institutional capacity building (20%) and price statistics (19%).
More than 40% of these missions were financed under AFRISTAT operational budget. French Co-operation services financed more than 30 of the missions carried out by AFRISTAT experts, and approximately 12% were financed by European Union as part of the EDF Support Programme.
The missions undertaken within the context of projects (UEMOA Price Project, EDF Support Programme, CEMAC and PARSTAT Price Projects) represent 36% of all missions.
It can be noted, therefore, that the missions undertaken by AFRISTAT Experts fall neatly within two geographical categories, West Africa and Central Africa. The relatively small number of support missions in some areas can be explained by the more gradual assumption of duties by Experts in these areas.
Detailed tables on these missions are attached as Annexes 2 and 3.
3. Seminars
From 1996 to 2000, AFRISTAT Directorate General organised 40 seminars, meetings or workshops, in addition to statutory meetings (Scientific Council, Management Board and Council of Ministers meetings).
These technical meetings were many, especially in the last three years: 12 in 1998, 13 in 1999 and 11 in 2000. Their main venue was Bamako (25 meetings), but they were also held in seven other Member States.
Contrarily to the meetings of the Management Board and the Scientific Council, which were financed by the AFRISTAT Fund, the technical meetings organised by Directorate General were almost financed by donors. The European Union financed 16 meetings, mainly as part of the EDF Support Programme while France financed 15 of them, especially in connection with UEMOA and CEMAC Price Projects. For most meetings, AFRISTAT contributed a financial complement.
The meetings concerned all of the areas covered by AFRISTAT activities (the detailed list of seminars organised by Directorate General is attached in Annex 4), namely:
• Management and institutional capacity building (4 workshops, 3 of which were for all the Member States and one for Central African States)
• National accounts (10 meetings, 1 of which was for all the Members States, 2 for Central African States and the Comoros, 5 for West African States and 2 for a limited number of Member States)
• Classifications (6 meetings, 4 of which were for all Member States, 1 for the Central African States and Comoros, and 1 for West African States);
• Price statistics (8 seminars, 5 of which were for CEMAC Member States, 2 for UEMOA States, and 1 for Cape Verde, Guinea and Mauritania).
• Household surveys (6 seminars and workshops)
4. Some Indicators for the Appreciation of Main Output
After 5 years of activities, including approximately three years during which work has been progressing on standard schedule, the question may be asked as to what impact these activities had on the development of national statistical systems in Member States.
The answer to this question is difficult to provide, at least for the three following reasons:
• The development of national statistical systems will result from joint efforts by Governments concerned, AFRISTAT (as an instrument for capacity building) and donors, each Government having the major share of responsibility in this regard;
• To assess the impact of the actions undertaken by the above-mentioned 3 categories of actors, adequate performance indicators should be available in each sector of statistical activities. These are currently being developed at AFRISTAT Directorate General.
• Data relating to resources allocated to development of statistics, especially financial resources, are relatively incomplete and often difficult to collect
However, the following positive observations can be made:
• The creation of AFRISTAT made it possible for the NSOs to overcome their individual isolation vis-à-vis each other. Top management executives as well as national experts in the different areas of activities were given an opportunity to establish fruitful contacts, exchange their respective experiences and soundly emulate each other owing to the frequent meetings organised by AFRISTAT. Technical support from AFRISTAT experts to their national counterparts has not only contributed to the transfer of know-how, but also assisted these counterparts to gain additional self-confidence.
• With the adoption of the Common Minimum Statistical Programme (PROSMIC), a strategic framework for the development of statistics in the next five years has now been made available to Member States, and they may adapt it to their specific needs.
• The bases for the harmonisation and the comparison of statistics were laid down in the last five years with the following activities:
✓ Preparation of common classifications of activities and products;
✓ Preparation of a common methodological base for national accounts and use of a common tool: the ERETES module;
✓ Preparation of common concepts for surveys and inquiries on employment and the informal sector;
✓ Finalisation of common methodology and tools for the compilation of the consumer price indices (see UEMOA and CEMAC Price Project);
✓ Preparation and finalisation of handbooks on methods in the areas of prices and national accounts;
✓ The beginning of an improvement in the dissemination of statistical information through the use of new technologies such as the Internet, CD-ROM, etc.
• The technical expertise of AFRISTAT is acknowledged far beyond the geographical area covered by its Member States and also by bilateral as well as multilateral donors. This is confirmed by the following activities which were organised in non member States and on behalf of intergovernmental African institutions:
✓ Support to the implementation of a national consumer price index in Madagascar, with French financial assistance;
✓ Development of the first price index in Djibouti, with financial assistance from the World Bank;
✓ Completion of a study on purchasing power parities in ASECNA Member
States;
✓ Drafting a programme for a complete revision of National Accounts for Cape Verde;
✓ Preparation of detailed task description for the harmonisation of the most important statistical data for multilateral follow-up activities within ECOWAS;
✓ Organisation and joint leadership of several seminars for member and non member States of AFRISTAT, particularly in the areas of agricultural statistics (with FAO), household surveys (with the World Bank), the informal sector (with several institutions and donors), and poverty.
However, these important achievements which should be further developed and consolidated should not hide the inadequacies which still persist, such as:
• In spite of the achievement of some progress, the national resources (human, financial and material) allocated to the development of national statistical systems remain quite inadequate;
• The organisation and management of national statistical systems are still inadequate in many Member States in spite of recommendations at seminars organised for NSOs Directors;
• Dissemination of statistical information is still affected by many weaknesses;
• Administrative difficulties encountered during the implementation of statistical programmes financed by donors should be cited among the obstacles to the development of activities in the area of statistics: it takes months or even years for projects to materialise even when financing has been secured for them.
Here follows a description of other problems and difficulties encountered by AFRISTAT during its first five years of operation and which had a negative impact on the development of statistics.
5. PROBLEMS AND DIFFICULTIES
In this part of the paper will be presented the problems and difficulties encountered by AFRISTAT Directorate General for the period covering 1996-2000 as well as the solutions, which were adopted or proposed. The problems fall within two main groups:
• The institutional and organisational problems
• The financial problems
These problems had, in varying degrees, some impact on performance during the period under review.
1. Institutional and Organisational Problems
The institutional and organisational problems arise from the relations between AFRISTAT and the NSOs, and also the regional integration institutions.
With regard to the earlier institutions, the following observations can be made:
• Timely information on the activities and projects in NSOs is inadequate: materials published by the INS are received irregularly at AFRISTAT head office; few activity reports are available and sometimes AFRISTAT Directorate General is informed of some national statistical projects only when they reach on site implementation level.
• The process of filling in and returning the forms sent out by AFRISTAT Directorate General is slow, particularly for the annual publication of “The NSOs in Member States”.
An improvement of information is quite crucial for a successful implementation of the PROSMIC and for truly effective co-ordination of activities in the area of statistics at regional level.
The institutional and organisational problems with the two economic and monetary unions mainly result from the lack of a formal working framework. In fact, even though these two organisations do undertake activities in the area of statistics, there is no provision in their statutory texts to govern their relations with a supranational institution in this field like AFRISTAT. Formal relations would allow for the establishment of a more effective co-operation framework through an improvement in the planning of those activities contracted out to AFRISTAT by UEMOA and CEMAC. To start with, framework agreements could be signed between each of these two economic and monetary institutions and AFRISTAT. A project to this effect was submitted to the President of the UEMOA Commission towards the end of 1999.
2. Financial Problems
They are twofold:
• Problems in the financing of AFRISTAT regular activities
• Problems in the financing of activities for the development of statistics in Member States
1. Problems in the Financing of AFRISTAT Regular Activities
As mentioned earlier, the financing of the regular activities of AFRISTAT Directorate General was secured by the creation of the AFRISTAT Fund with an adequate capital for a period of 8 years starting from 1stJanuary, 1998. Contributions to the capital of the AFRISTAT Fund were slow (it was noted that the first contributions were paid in one year in arrears), and to-date, the capital has still not been fully paid up17.
With actually paid up contributions to the capital reaching 85.5% to-date, the financing of the ordinary activities has been effective since 1998. However, financing problems might arise in the last two years of the first 10-year period, namely 2004 and 2005, if the defaulting Member States do not quickly pay up their arrears.
AFRISTAT had been allocated a tight operational budget because of the determination of the Franc Zone Ministers to maintain integration organisations covering all Member States in the form of light administrative structures with little financial cost. This explains why budget allocations for expenditures such as “technical assistance missions” and “meetings and seminars” were very modest. They provided only for 4 missions each year for each expert, and 2 regional seminars. In the last three years, experience has revealed the well-known inadequacy of these allocations. This is why, at AFRISTAT’s request, several technical assistance missions were financed by France. As regards to seminars, the dependency on donors was mentioned under item 5.3. Also, the work chart of the head office does not make provision for an Accountant position, and this duty is to be carried out by the Head of Administration and Finance, which is not quite realistic. From 1997 to 1999, the Directorate General had to resort to assistance by external Accountants. The recruitment of an experienced, full time Accountant on a time specific contract early in the year 2000 was made inevitable by the increasing activities and number and amounts of financing to be managed, particularly in relation to projects and programmes financed by donors. The next financing scheme should solve the problems of these inadequacies as noted.
2. Problems Relating to the Financing of Activities for the Development of Statistics in Member States
If it is admitted in principle that national responsibility for the development of statistics must be assumed first and foremost by Government, and that foreign assistance should only be a support, then it can be observed that relatively few efforts were made in the course of the last 5 years to finance regular activities in the area of statistics with national resources.
From the donors’ viewpoint, the most important problem relates to procedures for the approval of financing and for disbursement. Compliance with these procedures often entails delays in launching operational activities; a situation, which negatively affects scheduled activities. This is compounded by the fact that AFRISTAT does not have the status of a regional authorising agency, which explains an extension of the implementation cycle of projects financed by some of the donors; in some cases also, financing may prove to be inadequate because the time frame of the programme which host such financing is not compatible with the duration and continuity required for the development of statistics.
Such development of statistics in Member States still remains very heavily dependent on external financing. If in addition to this, consideration is given to the fact that AFRISTAT financing scheme only covers regular operational expenses (including, however, technical assistance missions and the organisation of a limited number of seminars), then it becomes easier to understand the reasons why the expected improvement in statistical information is slow to materialise in some sectors where data collection requires that relatively high cost surveys be carried out.
Therefore, in preparing the next financing scheme for AFRISTAT, the matter of the dependency on external financing should be considered seriously, while consideration should also be given to the fact that adequate and regular national resources are an indispensable condition for the improvement of statistics.
6. CONCLUSION
AFRISTAT Member States now have at their disposal an operational integration instrument whose regular operations are guaranteed over a long period by an original financing scheme, and whose technical expertise is now acknowledged at regional and international levels.
A strategic framework for the medium term development of statistics is now in place. It provides a definition of the major orientations, objectives, activities and results expected in six areas, which are of prime importance to Member States and the international community.
Foundation stones for the harmonisation, comparability and improvement of national statistics have been laid down by the adoption of conceptual and methodological frameworks, of common classifications and tools.
Adequate training activities have been carried out, and others are scheduled in the short and medium terms.
To some extent the isolation of individual Member States statisticians has been put to an end and joint activities at regional level have now become a reality.
The technical conditions for the development of a future African statistical system are progressively being met.
In a matter of five years, much has been done to comply with AFRISTAT mandate. However, what is still to be accomplished requires a great deal of effort. The challenge can be faced if Member States are willing to use the substantial research work carried out on their behalf and with them by AFRISTAT Directorate General, and to allocate adequate national resources to the development of statistics; eventually, the responsibility for, as well as the benefit of the improvement of statistical information shall first be attributed to them.
ANNEXES
Annex 1
STAFF DISTRIBUTION
|NAMES |Position |Date/assumption of duty |
| |
|BRILLEAU Alain |Price Statistics Expert |December 1995 |
|DIOP Lamine |Director General |January 1996 |
|METREAU Eric |National Accounts Expert |October1996 |
|GBOSSA Hounsou Vihouénou Hubert |National Accounts Expert |April 1997 |
|WIRRANKOSKI Paul-Henri |Household Surveys Expert |September1997 |
|BALEPA Martin |Deputy Managing Director |February 1998 |
|AMEGASHIE Komi Akolly F. |Computer and Data Processing Expert |February 1998 |
|BACKINY YETNA Prosper |Statistics and Economics Expert (informal sector) |February 1998 |
|OUEDRAOGO Eloi |Agricultural statistics Expert |February 1998 |
|BACHELART Jean-Pierre |Computer and Data Processing Expert |March 1998 |
|COUAILLAC PIERRE |Enterprise statistics Expert |September 1999 |
|GIRIER Christian |Macroeconomics Expert |April 2000 |
|BEZIZ Pierre * |Computer and Data Processing Expert |September 2000 |
*As a replacement for Bachelart Jean-Pierre who left in June 2000
AVAILABLE EXPERTISE PER YEAR
| |Number of Expert/Months |
|Year 1996 |22 |
|Year 1997 |41 |
|Year 1998 |99 |
|Year 1999 |103 |
|Year 2000 |109 |
|Overall |374 |
|Annex 2 |
|Distribution of missions on the basis of various criteria |
| | | | | | | |
|Countries or institutions |Number of |% | |Years |Number of |% |
| |Expert/days | | | |Expert/days | |
|Benin |25 |1,1% | |Year 1996 |188 |8,3% |
|Burkina Faso |48 |2,1% | |Year 1997 |426 |18,8% |
|Cameroon |129 |5,7% | |Year 1998 |429 |18,9% |
|Central African Rep. |39 |1,7% | | Year 1999 |579 |25,5% |
|Comoro Island |12 |0,5% | |Year 2000 |645 |28,5% |
|Congo |34 |1,5% | | | | |
|Côte d’Ivoire |124 |5,5% | |Areas |Number of |% |
| | | | | |Expert/days | |
|Gabon |65 |2,9% | |National Accounts |660 |29,1% |
|Guinea |10 |0,4% | |Documentation |8 |0,4% |
|Guinea-Bissau |14 |0,6% | |Employment, informal sector |86 |3,8% |
|Equatorial Guinea |28 |1,2% | |Household surveys |155 |6,8% |
|Mali |117 |5,2% | |Data processing |199 |8,8% |
|Mauritania |162 |7,1% | |Macroeconomics |40 |1,8% |
|Niger |31 |1,4% | |Management, institutional capacity |451 |19,9% |
| | | | |building | | |
|Senegal |75 |3,3% | |Classifications |54 |2,4% |
|Chad |77 |3,4% | |Poverty |66 |2,9% |
|Togo |41 |1,8% | |Price statistics |427 |18,8% |
|Other African countries | 101 |4,5% | |Agricultural statistics |121 |5,3% |
|CEMAC |206 |9,1% | | | | |
|UEMOA |201 |8,9% | |Financing sources |Number of |% |
| | | | | |Expert/days | |
|ECA |61 |2,7% | | AFRISTAT Fund |984 |43,4% |
|ECOWAS |17 |0,7% | |World Bank |101 |4,5% |
|ZONE FRANC |67 |3,0% | |European Union |281 |12,4% |
|United Nations |11 |0,5% | |France |684 |30,2% |
|EUROSTAT |49 |2,2% | |ECA |20 |0,9% |
|INSEE |137 |6,0% | |UEMOA |31 |1,4% |
|FAO |30 |1,3% | | Other sources |166 |7,3% |
|ENSEA |47 |2,1% | | | | |
|CEFIL |28 |1,2% | |Projects |Number of |% |
| | | | | |Expert/days | |
|Munich Centre |16 |0,7% | |PROSMIC |228 |10,1% |
|DIAL |31 |1,4% | |PARSTAT |130 |5,7% |
| Other institutions |234 |10,3% | | UEMOA Prices |176 |7,8% |
|OVERALL |2267 |100,0% | | CEMAC Prices |277 |12,2% |
| | | | |Not included in projects mentioned |1456 |64,2% |
|NB: Missions undertaken to institutions include meetings and seminars organised by or for these institutions irrespectively of the countries of|
|the venue. |
|Annex 3 | |
| |
|Detailed distribution of missions by countries, areas and years |
| | | | | |
|Countries |Area |Years |Number of | |
| | | |Experts/ days | |
|Benin |National accounts |Year 1997 |4 | |
| | |Year 1999 |3 | |
| | |Year 2000 |8 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1997 |7 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |3 | |
| |Total Benin |25 | |
|Burkina Faso |National accounts |Year 1997 |5 | |
| | |Year 1998 |4 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1996 |9 | |
| | |Year 2000 |7 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1997 |14 | |
| | |Year 2000 |5 | |
| |Total Burkina Faso |48 | |
|Cameroon |National accounts |Year 1997 |43 | |
| |Household surveys |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |27 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |3 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1999 |4 | |
| | |Year 2000 |10 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Poverty |Year 1998 |11 | |
| | |Year 1999 |4 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |8 | |
| |Total Cameroon |129 | |
|Central African |National accounts |Year 1997 |4 | |
| Republic |Household surveys |Year 1998 |4 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 2000 |6 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1999 |3 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |3 | |
| |Poverty |Year 1999 |3 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |4 | |
| | |Year 2000 |12 | |
| |Total Central African Republic |39 | |
|Country |Area |Years |Number of | |
| | | |Experts/ days | |
|Chad |National accounts |Year 1997 |5 | |
| | |Year 1999 |11 | |
| | |Year 2000 |16 | |
| |Employment and informal sector |Year 2000 |9 | |
| |Household surveys |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |9 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 2000 |4 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |9 | |
| |Total Chad |77 | | |
|Comoros |Household surveys |Year 1998 |6 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |6 | |
| |Total Comoros |12 | | |
|Congo |Household surveys |Year 1998 |6 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 2000 |4 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 2000 |6 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |6 | |
| | |Year 2000 |12 | |
| |Total Congo |34 | | |
|Côte d'Ivoire |National accounts |Year 1996 |13 | |
| | |Year 1997 |38 | |
| | |Year 1999 |21 | |
| | |Year 2000 |6 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1996 |9 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |3 | |
| |Poverty |Year 1999 |5 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1996 |10 | |
| | |Year 1997 |14 | |
| | |Year 1998 |5 | |
| |Total Côte d'Ivoire |124 | | |
|Gabon |National accounts |Year 1997 |5 | |
| |Household surveys |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |5 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 1998 |10 | |
| | |Year 2000 |2 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1997 |13 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1997 |8 | |
| | |Year 1998 |5 | |
| | |Year 1999 |4 | |
| | |Year 2000 |4 | |
| |Total Gabon |65 | | |
|Guinea |Household surveys |Year 1998 |5 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |5 | |
| |Total Guinea |10 | | |
|Country |Area |Years |Number of | |
| | | |Experts/ days | |
|Bissau Guinea |Household surveys |Year 2000 |5 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 2000 |5 | |
| |Total Bissau Guinea |14 | | |
|Equatorial Guinea |Household surveys |Year 1998 |5 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 2000 |2 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1998 |6 | |
| | |Year 1999 |4 | |
| | |Year 2000 |11 | |
| |Total Equatorial Guinea |28 | | |
|Mali |National accounts |Year 1996 |21 | |
| | |Year 1997 |17 | |
| | |Year 1998 |3 | |
| | |Year 1999 |38 | |
| | |Year 2000 |14 | |
| |Computer activities and data processing |Year 1998 |10 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |5 | |
| |Agricultural statistics |Year 2000 |1 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1997 |8 | |
| |Total Mali |117 | |
|Mauritania |National accounts |Year 1998 |6 | |
| | |Year 1999 |8 | |
| | |Year 2000 |104 | |
| |Household surveys |Year 1999 |5 | |
| |Agricultural statistics |Year 1998 |16 | |
| | |Year 1999 |18 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1999 |5 | |
| |Total Mauritania |162 | |
|Niger |National accounts |Year 1997 |4 | |
| | |Year 1998 |4 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1996 |9 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1996 |5 | |
| | |Year 2000 |5 | |
| |Total Niger |31 | |
|Senegal |National accounts |Year 1997 |4 | |
| | |Year 1998 |4 | |
| | |Year 2000 |21 | |
| |Employment and informal sector |Year 1999 |5 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1996 |6 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |4 | |
| |Poverty |Year 2000 |6 | |
| |Agricultural statistics |Year 1999 |16 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1996 |5 | |
| | |Year 1998 |4 | |
| |Total Senegal |75 | |
|Country |Area |Years |Number of | |
| | | |Experts/ days | |
|Togo |National accounts |Year 1997 |3 | |
| | |Year 1999 |3 | |
| |Management and capacity building |Year 1997 |6 | |
| | |Year 2000 |5 | |
| |Classifications |Year 1997 |3 | |
| |Price statistics |Year 1996 |5 | |
| | |Year 1997 |12 | |
| | |Year 2000 |4 | |
| |Total Togo |41 | |
ANNEX 4
TECHNICAL MEETINGS AND SEMINARS ORGANISED BY AFRISTAT
MANAGEMENT, INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY BUILDING
|Workshop on " The Strategy, resource management and administration of a National Statistical Office" |
|Bamako |25 to 28 may 1998 |AFRISTAT Member States, CEMAC, UEMOA, ECA, BECAO, | PROSMIC Project |
| | |INSEE, France |Financing: European Union |
|Workshop on “The Strategies for data dissemination and communication of a National Statistical Office” |
|Bamako |17 to 19 may 1999 |AFRISTAT Member States, CEMAC, ECA, BECAO, ENSEA, |PROSMIC Project |
| | |INSEE, EUROSTAT, France |Financing: European Union |
|Workshop for the validation of the biannual statistics programme of CEMAC Member States |
|Douala |29 February to 2 march 2000|CEMAC Member States, BEAC, ISSEA |Financing: France |
|Workshop on “Quality and statistics” |
|Bamako |22 to 24 May 2000 |AFRISTAT Member States, CEMAC, ECA, BECAO, BEAC, |Financing: France |
| | |BC Mauritania, INSEE, EUROSTAT | |
NATIONAL ACCOUNTS
|First Task Force on the harmonisation of methods for the compilation of national accounts–West Africa |
|Abidjan |14 au 24 April 1998 |UEMOA States, Mauritania, UEMOA Commission, BECAO |EDF Support Programme |
| | | |Financing: European Union |
|Second Task Force on the harmonisation of the methods for the compilation of national accounts – Central Africa and the Comoros |
|N’djamena |11 au 22 may 1998 |CEMAC States, Comoros, CEMAC Executive |EDF Support Programme |
| | |Secretariat, BEAC |Financing: European Union |
|First joint meeting of Task Forces on the harmonisation of the methods for the compilation of national accounts |
|Bamako |19 to 23 October1998 |AFRISTAT States, CEMAC, UEMOA, ECOWAS, ECA, BECAO |EDF Support Programme |
| | | |Financing: European Union |
|Second Task Force on the harmonisation of the methods for the compilation of national accounts–West Africa |
|Bamako |30 November to 4 December |UEMOA States, Mauritania, UEMOA Commission, BECAO |EDF Support Programme |
| |1998 | |Financing: European Union |
|Task Force on the harmonisation of the methods for the compilation of national accounts |
|Bamako |8 au 12 February 1999 |UEMOA States, Mauritania, UEMOA Commission, BECAO |EDF Support Programme |
| | | |Financing: European Union |
|Task Force on the harmonisation of GDP for UEMOA countries |
|Bamako |15 to 17 February 1999 |UEMOA States, UEMOA Commission, BECAO |PARSTAT Programme |
| | | |Financing: European Union |
|Task Force on the harmonisation of GDP: presentation and validation of results |
|Ouagadougou |17 to 19 mars 1999 |UEMOA States, UEMOA Commission, BCAO, BCS, FMI, |PARSTAT Programme |
| | |EUROSTAT |Financing: European Union |
|Task Force on the harmonised methods for the compilation of national accounts for the CEMAC States and the Comoros |
|Douala |14 to 25 June 1999 |CEMAC States, Comoros, CEMAC Executive |EDF Support Programme |
| | |Secretariat, BEAC |Financing: European Union |
|Seminar on the evaluation of the ERETES module |
|Yaoundé |24 to 26 November 1999 |Cameroon, Central African Republic, Côte d’Ivoire,|Financing: France, AFRISTAT |
| | |Gabon, Mali, Mauritania, CEMAC Executive | |
| | |Secretariat, BEAC, INSEE, CESD, France | |
|Meeting of the selected Task Force on the Manual of Methods for the compilation of national accounts in AFRISTAT Member States. |
|Bamako |17 to 21 April 2000 |Benin, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Mali | |
| | | |Financing: AFRISTAT |
CLASSIFICATIONS
|First Task Force on the harmonisation of classifications in West Africa |
|Bamako |9 to 13 February 1998 |UEMOA States, Mauritania, INS Morocco, UEMOA |EDF Support Programme |
| | |Commission, INSEE, BCAO, |Financing: European Union |
|Meeting of the Task Force on the compilation of classifications - Central Africa and Comoros |
|Libreville |9 to 13 March 1998 |CEMAC States, Comoros, INS Tunisia, BEAC, CEMAC |EDF Support Programme |
| | |Executive Secretariat, INSEE, France |Financing: European Union |
| First Joint Meeting of the Task Forces on the harmonisation of classifications |
|Bamako |12 to 16 October 1998 |AFRISTAT States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, |EDF Support Programme |
| | |UEMOA Commission, ECOWAS, BCEAO, INSEE |Financing: European Union |
|Meeting of the Joint Task Force on classifications |
|Bamako |10 to 14 May, 1999 |AFRISTAT States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, |EDF Support Programme |
| | |UEMOA Commission, BCEAO, INSEE |Financing: European Union |
|Meeting of the Joint Task Force on classifications |
|Bamako |8-12 November 1999 |AFRISTAT States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, |EDF Support Programme |
| | |UEMOA Commission, BCEAO, INSEE |Financing: European Union |
| |
|Meeting of the Joint Task Force on classifications |
|Bamako |6-10 March, 2000 |AFRISTAT States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, | |
| | |UEMOA Commission, BCEAO, INSEE |Financing: AFRISTAT |
MACROECONOMICS
|First Seminar on short-term economic forecast– UEMOA Member States |
|Bamako |21 to 25 February 2000 |UEMOA States, UEMOA Commission, BCEAO, ENSEA, AFD,|Financing: AFRISTAT |
| | |French Central Bank, France | |
|First Seminar on short-term economic forecast– CEMAC Member States |
|Douala |6 to10 November 2000 |CEMAC States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, BEAC, |Financing: France |
| | |BCEAO, AFD, French Central Bank, France | |
PRICE STATISTICS
|First Meeting on the harmonisation of consumer prices indices in CEMAC Member States |
|Douala |10 to 13 February 1998 |CEMAC States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, ISSEA, |CEMAC Prices project |
| | |BEAC, INSEE, EuroCost, France |Financing: France |
|Seminar on the compilation of a new consumer price index |
|Bamako |30 March to 3 April 1998 |Cape Verde, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, |Financing: AFRISTAT |
| | |Mali, France | |
|Second Meeting on the harmonisation of indices of consumer prices in CEMAC Member States |
|Libreville |9 to 12 June 1998 |CEMAC States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, BEAC, |CEMAC Prices Project |
| | |INSEE, France, UNDP |Financing: France |
|First seminar on the price component of consumer price indices harmonisation project in CEMAC Member States |
|Bangui |10 to 13 November 1999 |CEMAC States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, BEAC | CEMAC Prices Project |
| | | |Financing: France |
|Seminar on "Techniques for the analysis of the evolution of price indices" |
|Bamako |22 to 26 November 1999 |UEMOA States, UEMOA Commission, BCEAO, France |Financing: France |
|Second seminar on the price component of consumer price indices harmonisation project in CEMAC Member States |
|Douala |2 to 5 May 2000 |CEMAC States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat, |CEMAC Prices Project |
| | | |Financing: France |
|Third seminar on the price component of consumer price indices harmonisation project in CEMAC Member States |
|Brazzaville |7 to 0 November 2000 |CEMAC States, CEMAC Executive Secretariat |CEMAC Prices Project |
| | | |Financing: France |
|Second Seminar on "Techniques for the analysis of the evolution of price indices" |
|Bamako |28 November to 1st December|UEMOA States, UEMOA Commission, BCEAO |Financing: France |
| |2000 | | |
HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS - DATA PROCESSING
|First seminar on the processing of survey data on household expenditures in major urban centres in UEMOA States |
|Bamako |7 to 18 October 1996 |UEMOA States, EuroCost, INSEE, France |UEMOA Prices Project |
| | | |Financing: France |
|Second seminar on the processing of survey data on household expenditures in major urban centres in UEMOA States |
|Bamako |9 to 20 December 1996 |UEMOA States EuroCost, INSEE, France |UEMOA Prices Project |
| | | |Financing: France |
|Third seminar on the processing of survey data on household expenditures in major urban centres in UEMOA States |
|Bamako |19 to 30 Mai 1997 |UEMOA States EuroCost, INSEE, France |UEMOA Prices Project |
| | | |Financing: France |
|Regional Training Seminar on Ariel+Plus |
|Libreville |13 to23 April 1999 |CEMAC States, Angola, Djibouti, Sao Tome and |CEMAC Prices Project |
| | |Principe |Financing: France |
|Workshop on the storage of surveys and census data on CD-ROM |
|Bamako |24 to 28 May 1999 |UEMOA States, Guinea, Mauritania, ENSEA, World |Financing: World Bank |
| | |Bank | |
|Workshop on the preparation of surveys on consumer budgets |
|Bamako |27 May to au 2 June 2000 |Guinea, Mali, Senegal, World Bank |Financing: World Bank, |
| | | |AFRISTAT |
AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS
|Training Seminar on the compilation and use of accounts on the availability /use of agricultural and food products and of food balance |
|sheets |
|Bamako |12 to 16 April 1999 |Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African |Financing: FAO |
| | |Republic, Congo (RDC), Côte d‘Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana Guinea, | |
| | |Liberia, Mali, Morocco, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, | |
| | |Sierra Leone, Chad, FAO | |
|Technical meeting on methods to forecast food product yields |
|Bamako |15 and 16 May 2000 |Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, |Financing: FAO |
| | |Chad, Agrhymet Centre, FAO | |
THE INFORMAL SECTOR
|Seminar on the informal sector and economic policy in sub-Saharan Africa |
|Bamako |10 to 14 March 1997 |87 participants |Financing: AFRISTAT, EUROSTAT, ODA, World Bank, ILO, France, ORSTOM|
|Countries and institutions represented: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, Mali,|
|Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Chad, Togo, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Sao Tome, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, South Africa |
|Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, France, United Kingdom, Portugal, BCEAO, BEAC, ECA, ECOWAS, CERPOD, World Bank, ILO, DIAL, EUROSTAT, INSEE, |
|United Nations, ORSTOM, UNDP, AFRISTAT |
|Seminar for the validation of a manual of harmonised concepts on employment in the informal sector |
|Ouagadougou |19 to 21 October 1998 |UEMOA States, UEMOA Commission, BCEAO, BOAD, | PARSTAT Programme |
| | |BCS, DIAL |Financing: European Union |
ANNEX 5
List of AFRISTAT Publications
Methodology Series:
- Actes du séminaire sur le secteur informel et la politique économique en Afrique subsaharienne (Série Méthode, n°1, Mars 1997). Papers of the Seminar are available both in French and in English.
- Concepts et indicateurs du marché du travail et du secteur informel ( Série Méthodes, n°2 Décembre 1999).
- Classifications d’activités et de produits des Etats membres d’AFRISTAT (Série Méthodes, n°3, Décembre 2000).
Studies Series:
- Etat du système statistique dans les Etats membres d’AFRISTAT : rapport de synthèse de l’enquête réalisée en 1996 (Série Etude, n°1 , Juillet 1998).
- Etat des réflexions dur les principes fondamentaux de la statistique publique (Série Etudes n°2 , Octobre 1999)
- Organisation du système d’informations agricoles et alimentaires dans les Etats membres d’AFRISTAT : rapport de synthèse de l’enquête réalisée en 1998-1999 (Série Etudes n°3 Avril 2000)
Yearbook Series:
- Recueil de statistiques des Etats membres d’AFRISTAT (Série Annuaires, n°1, Mars 2000)
Other documents published by AFRISTAT:
- Les instituts nationaux de statistique des Etats membres d’AFRISTAT en 1997 (Octobre 1999)
- Les instituts nationaux de statistique des Etats membres d’AFRISTAT en 1998 (Avril 2000)
- Les instituts nationaux de statistique des Etats membres d’AFRISTAT en 1999 (Décembre 2000)
- Recueil des textes de base d’AFRISTAT, Avril 1999.
Other publications in association with other organisations:
- Indice harmonisé des prix à la consommation des pays membres de l’UEMOA : Théorie et pratique,
- La consommation et l’emploi dans les capitales des Etats membre de l’UEMOA, Décembre 1999.
1 The Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC) was established in 1994. It brings together the following 6 Member States: Cameroon, Centrafrique, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and Chad. The West African Economic and Monetary Union UEMOA was created in the same year. It brings together the following 8 Member States: Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. AFRISTAT has 17 Member States: CEMAC and UEMOA Member States, the Comoros, Guinea, and Mauritania. The last two States do not belong to the Franc Zone.
2 Ecowas brings together 15 Member States: the eight UEMOA Member States, Cape Verde, the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
3 See item 3 of the Constituent Treaty.
4 An “africanisation” scheme of all Expert posts was decided when AFRISTAT started its activities. This plan will start on 2001 to finish on 2006.
5 This programme financed by the European Development fund (EDF) enabled in 1997 to start works on harmonisation (classifications and national accounts) as well as capacity building.
6 6.National Statistics System of a country brings together in its broadest sense: The National Statistics Office, which is the nucleus, the statistical departments of the technical Ministries and of the Central Bank as well as other structures which contribute to the production of statistics for public use.
7 See AFRISTAT publication titled “ Situation of the statistical system in AFRISTAT Member States. Executive Summary of the survey conducted in 1996. Series of Studies N°1 July 1998.”
8 The budget of the EDF Support Programme to AFRISTAT financed by the European Union was EURO 900 000 (1 EURO= CFA F 957)
9 PARSTAT (Regional Statistical Support Programme) is designed for UEMOA Member States and financed by the European Union. It was adopted in 1997. The main activities under this programme have not yet started.
10 PARIS 21 (Partnership In Statistics for the 21st Century) is an initiative launched in November 1999 by the international community to “build the statistical capacities as crucial elements for effective of development policies”.
11 Association of National Accounting (ACN) based in Paris brings together Economics and national Accountants, Practitioners and University Dons from France, French-speaking Africa and Europe. It organises an International Colloquium every two years.
12 EUROCOST was a non-profit making organisation based in Luxembourg and specialised in the fllow up and analysis of price trends.
13 Guinea-Bissau, which joined UEMOA only in 1997, is not concerned by the project.
14 The CHAPO Software (Harmonised Computer-aided Price Calculation) was designed by EuroCost within the framework of the UEMOA Prices Project through the financing of the European Union. It makes it possible to implement all processes relating to a consumer price index, from data collection to analysis, through publication and data input.
15 In March 1997, the AFRISTAT Directorate General organised in Bamako in conjunction with several institutions and donors, an international seminar on the informal sector and economic policy in sub-saharan Africa. The Proceedings of this Seminar were published in 3 volumes (English and French) and are available on AFRISTAT ‘s web Site.
16 The survey methodology called type 1-2-3 was developed by DIAL. It is a three-phase survey (employment, informal sector, household consumption). This methodology is the only one, to our knowledge, which makes it possible to measure in an exhaustive manner, the informal activities.
17 As at 31st December 2000, 10 member States out of the 17, and France had fully paid up their contribution to the Afristat Fund, and an 11th member had only paid an advance.
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