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Outline of the Project on Capacity Development for the Implementation of Economic Census 2018 in Nepal
Summary
The Statistics Bureau of Japan in combination with the Statistical Research and Training Institute (SRTI), the National Statistics Center (NSTAC) and private think tanks etc. has cooperated with the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on "Project on Capacity Development for the Implementation of Economic Census 2018" in Nepal.
"Project on Capacity Development for the Implementation of Economic Census 2018", which is one of the projects supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) through official development assistance (ODA), has been conducted since March 2016. The main activity of the project is the implementation of the first-ever Economic Census 2018 in Nepal. In this project, the SBJ not only cooperates in implementing the Economic Census but also offers training in order to enhance the capacity of statistical staff such as the staff of CBS, the statistical staff of local statistics offices and the staff of line ministries. The SBJ cooperates on the project as one of the public-private cooperative organizations for the project.
Background
The Statistics Act of Nepal enacted in 1958 has given authority to CBS for implementing censuses, surveys and other micro-economic statistics. So far, CBS has conducted Population Census 11 times, Agriculture Census six times and Manufacturing Establishment Census ten times. However, it has not conducted Economic Census. Since Economic Census provides essential statistical information on economic activities, the shortage of economic statistics such as the number of enterprises, business, persons engaged has brought about difficulties in drafting economic policies and plans. The overall development goal of government is to attain poverty reduction and has come up with 13th Three Year Plan (2014-2016) which envisions graduating Nepal from the Least developed country (LDC) category to a Developing Country status by 2022. In this context, Economic Census will be inevitable to fulfill the broad economic data needs in achieving the prevailing challenges towards upgrading the country to a Developing Country. As Economic Census will be conducted for the first time, CBS requested JICA for technical support.
The following are the key events that led to the initiation of the project:
- May 2014, The official of the SRTI visited the CBS with the official letter by the Director-General of the SBJ
- July 2014, The CBS submitted the request document on the cooperation in the Economic Census to the JICA Nepal Office.
- November 2014, The JICA officially adopted the request document of the CBS.
- September 2015, The JICA dispatched experts for the Detailed Planning Investigation.
- Feburuary 2016, Record of Discussions was signed between the CBS and the JICA Nepal Office.
Outline of the Project
- Overall Goal
Statistical results provided by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) are utilized for planning and implementation of policies, plans, and strategies of line ministries, local governments, universities, research institutions and private sector. - Project Purpose
Capacity of the statistical staff of CBS to conduct Economic Census and such skills commonly used in conducting other related statistical surveys are enhanced. - Outputs
(1) Statistical staff of CBS is able to plan and implement Economic Census
(2) Statistical staff of CBS is able to process and scrutinize Economic Census data
(3) Statistical staff of CBS is able to analyze Economic Census data
(4) Statistical staff of CBS is able to disseminate the results of Economic Census
(5) Statistical database including statistical business register and census sampling frame is developed
(6) Capacity of statistical staff of Statistics Offices (SOs) to conduct necessary activities of Economic Census in the local level is enhanced
(7) Capacity of statistical staff of CBS to implement training for staff of line ministries as well as necessary coordination with relevant stakeholders is enhanced. - Inputs
(1) Input by JICA
(a) Dispatch of Experts
Expert(s) dispatched by JICA will be on following areas:
- Chief Advisor
- Data Processing / Programming
- Coordinator
And other experts will be assigned if necessity arises.
(b) Training
Trainings in Japan, other relevant third countries, and in-country trainings, seminars and workshops as necessary to the counterpart
(c) Equipment
The following equipment will be provided based on the needs for the effective implementation of the Project:
- PCs, servers, printers, projectors, photo copies, GIS system, e-census software, tablets
- One (1) vehicle - Duration
The duration of the Project will be five (5) years effective from the date of first arrival of the JICA Expert(s) or mission team relating to implementation of the Project.
Expected Outcomes
It is expected by implementing the Economic Census to be able to identify the actual situation of business activities of establishments and enterprises as well as the comprehensive industrial structure in Nepal. For example, the numbers of establishments and enterprises, by Location, Number of persons engaged, Type of business conducted, Sales and so on, will be clearly shown. Since the results of the Economic Census will be able to become the establishment frame database for other economic statistical sample surveys, the precision of economic statistics will be vastly improved.
It is necessary that the administrative ministries and regional government in Nepal identify the comprehensive industrial structure in Nepal for forming effective policies and plans. The results of the Economic Census will be able to contribute to effective promotion of the main strategy for national development in Nepal.
The SBJ plans to dispatch statistical experts, conduct training for the CBS officers at the SBJ and exchange technical information with other relevant third countries.
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