STATIN to Conduct Household Expenditure Survey

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) will be conducting a household expenditure survey (HES) from February 6, 2017 to February 2018 to obtain information on the goods and services purchased by private households.

This is being done in order to determine the general pattern of expenditure throughout the economy.

Project Manager for the HES, Shelly-Ann Chambers, told JIS News that goods and services include food, education, health, transportation, recreation and communication.

“So, it is everything a household spends on, such as food, clothes, phonecard, electricity, water, household equipment and prescription drugs,” Mrs. Chambers outlined.

She added that each month a sample of approximately 1,200 households will be visited by the STATIN interviewers amounting to some 15,000 households at the end of the survey.

“We would have checked our records at STATIN of all the households in Jamaica and then get a proportion of urban and rural, young and old right across the island…so it is representative of every sector of the economy,” the Project Manager informed.

She noted that the data collected will be used to compute the consumer price index (CPI), which is the most commonly used indicator of inflation in Jamaica.

The CPI is a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services.

The survey also serves to collect information on the changing consumer tastes and preferences, changes in income levels, quality changes with the entry of new products into the market, technological advancement and changes in demographic structure of the population.

“This information is used to update the ‘basket’ of goods and services as it relates to how much persons spend on each item or the category of items consumed. The information will also reflect current expenditure patterns of individuals,” Mrs. Chambers further explained.

The survey is conducted every five to 10 years. The last one was done in 2004/2005.

For further information on the HES or other surveys in the field, persons may call 630-1600 or visit STATIN’s website at: www.statinja.gov.jm.