By our correspondent
The National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, has provided insights into how it gathers and processes data before releasing indices to the public on the national Gross Domestic Product, GDP and the poverty levels in the country.
The Statistician-General of the Federation, Prince Adeyemi Adeniran, gave the insights on Thursday in Abuja while interacting with media executives on the work done on the current rebasing of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and the Nigerian Living Standards Survey (NLSS).
He said the methodology for computing the estimates requires enumerators to visit selected households across the country to record their consumption and expenditure, through a 7-day recall process.
He said the data collection is usually done for a year to enable the NBS to capture the seasonal variations in household consumption and expenditure.
“The information collected at the end of the 12 months is then aggregated and appropriately weighted to generate the total national consumption.
“Households whose total consumption of both food and non-food falls below a certain threshold are then adjudged to be poor and living under the poverty line.
“On the other hand, the CPI rebasing entails bringing the weight and price reference periods closer to the current period (Current Consumption Pattern), which is expected to be done every five years.
“The rebasing of Gross domestic product (GDP) is the process of replacing an old base year with a new/more recent base year which is known as the reference period to keep up with the evolution in prices.
“Economies as you know undergo structural changes over time (e.g., the growth of the tech sector, and the decline of traditional manufacturing).
“The rebasing exercise helps to account for these shifts, offering a more accurate snapshot of the economy’s composition.
“GDP rebasing offers significant benefits by aligning economic data with the current realities of the economy. It improves the accuracy of growth measurements, supports better policy making, and enhances the credibility of economic data both domestically and internationally,” the Statistician-General said.
He said also that these routine yet important statistical exercises deserve to be fully understood and utilized to enhance public knowledge, inform policy, and improve overall economic governance in Nigeria.
He added: “In so doing, the output of the process will reflect an accurate picture of living conditions and the state of the economy in Nigeria, enhance the understanding of emerging sectors and economic activities, and satisfy the needs of all users of the data.
“For NBS, we see these engagements as a necessary aspect of the data production process. One of the United Nations fundamental principles of official statistics is Accountability and Transparency, and this is one of the ways by which NBS ensures that the processes are open and transparent. By doing so, we promote and enhance the credibility of the system and build confidence in what we do in NBS.
“It is also another way of ensuring inclusivity, promoting collaboration, and engendering partnership throughout the process of these exercises, and the NBS’s wider data production.”
He called on the media to be critical partners in the data production process, to become a strong voice and advocate of the work being done at the Bureau, and sought for accurate, objective, and sound reportage to help build the confidence and trust of the public in NBS activities.
On the part of the NBS, he said they will continue to remain objective, open, transparent, and professional in their work as the national statistical agency for the country.
The NBS has already carried out three critical exercises for which the reports are awaited.
They are the Nigerian Living Standards Survey (NLSS) 2022/23, the Rebasing of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Consumer Prices Index (CPI).
