Roadtown, Tortola - The Development Planning Unit (DPU) is reporting that its Household Expenditure Survey is now underway.

Acting Director of the DPU, Ms. Patlian Johnson said the necessary preparations are now complete and enumerators have begun making visits to the housing units selected for the survey.

Ms. Johnson told the Department of Information and Public Relations a mini- pilot test was completed, the questionnaires and supporting documentation have been updated and the enumerators selected to conduct the survey have received several hours of vigorous training and are ready to begin the interview process.

“We wanted to ensure that the persons who represent the department and by extension the Government of the Territory were properly trained and ideally suited to conduct the survey as well as ensure that the survey instruments, the questionnaires and journals were comprehensive,” Ms. Johnson said.

The primary purpose of the survey is to collect information on the buying habits, income and other characteristics of households and families and to relate the expenditure and income of consumers to their living conditions.

The Household Expenditure Survey will be administered through three questionnaires.

The Household Questionnaire will solicit basic information on the housing units such as the type of building and water supply and the Individual Questionnaire focuses on the age, sex, educational attainment and employment status of members of the household. The third questionnaire, an Expense Diary, will be used to record the daily expenditure of spending members of households over a two-week period.

The DPU official appealed for the cooperation of residents as its enumerators undertake the HES. “The information gathered through the Household Expenditure Survey will among other things help Government determine the spending patterns of households; provide data for assessing the impact of socio-economic policies on households as well as provide information to assess the cost of health services and expenditure on education.”

“We are aware that confidentiality is one of the main concerns expressed by respondents in most surveys and there are standard measures in place to safeguard the information acquired. We therefore want to assure persons that the information provided will be treated with the strictest confidence.”

Ms. Johnson added “it is extremely important that people understand the importance of the survey and to cooperate by providing the required information.”

The HES was officially launched by Premier and Minister for Finance Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal, OBE during a Press Briefing on May 18. On that occasion, the Premier noted that the last HES was conducted here in 1994 to 1995 and cited a need to update this information in light of the economic changes that have occurred since then.

The Development Planning Unit is responsible for acquiring and analysing statistics to facilitate economic planning and analysis. The unit functions under the umbrella of the Premier’s Office.