Luxembourg stands out as the European leader in quality of life for 2025, achieving a score of 220 on the Quality of Life Index. The Netherlands follows closely behind with 211 points, while Albania and Ukraine rank at the bottom with scores of 104 and 115 respectively. This index provides a thorough assessment of living conditions across Europe, reflecting various factors that shape the overall well-being of populations and extending beyond purely economic metrics. Understanding the quality of life index The quality of life index is a multifaceted measure that incorporates factors such as purchasing power, pollution levels, housing affordability, cost of living, safety, healthcare quality, traffic conditions, and climate, to measure the overall quality of life of a Country. Higher overall index scores indicate better living conditions. However, in subindexes such as pollution, cost of living, and traffic commute time, lower values correspond to improved quality of life. Challenges affecting life satisfaction Despite the fact that European countries register high levels of life quality by for example leading the ranking of happiest countries in the world, life satisfaction across the European Union has been on a downward trend since 2018. The EU's overall life satisfaction score dropped from 7.3 out of 10 in 2018 to 7.1 in 2022. This decline can be attributed to various factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic and economic challenges such as high inflation. Rising housing costs, in particular, have emerged as a critical concern, significantly affecting quality of life. This issue has played a central role in shaping voter priorities for the European Parliamentary Elections in 2024 and becoming one of the most pressing challenges for Europeans, profoundly influencing both daily experiences and long-term well-being.

Abstract

Timor-Leste experienced a fundamental social and economic upheaval after its people voted for independence from Indonesia in a referendum in August 1999. Population was displaced, and public and private infrastructure was destroyed or rendered inoperable. Soon after the violence ceased, the country began rebuilding itself with the support from UN agencies, the international donor community and NGOs. The government laid out a National Development Plan (NDP) with two central goals: to promote rapid, equitable and sustainable economic growth and to reduce poverty. Formulating a national plan and poverty reduction strategy required data on poverty and living standards, and given the profound changes experienced, new data collection had to be undertaken to accurately assess the living conditions in the country. The Planning Commission of the Timor-Leste Transitional Authority undertook a Poverty Assessment Project along with the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the United Nations Development Programme and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

This project comprised three data collection activities on different aspects of living standards, which taken together, provide a comprehensive picture of well-being in Timor-Leste. The first component was the Suco Survey, which is a census of all 498 sucos (villages) in the country. It provides an inventory of existing social and physical infrastructure and of the economic characteristics of each suco, in addition to aldeia (hamlet) level population figures. It was carried out between February and April 2001. A second element was the Timor-Leste Living Standards Measurement Survey (TLSS). This is a household survey with a nationally representative sample of 1,800 families from 100 sucos. It was designed to diagnose the extent, nature and causes of poverty, and to analyse policy options facing the country. It assembles comprehensive information on household demographics, housing and assets, household expenditures and some components of income, agriculture, labor market data, basic health and education, subjective perceptions of poverty and social capital. Data collection was undertaken between end August and November 2001. The final component was the Participatory Potential Assessment (PPA), which is a qualitative community survey in 48 aldeias in the 13 districts of the country to take stock of their assets, skills and strengths, identify the main challenges and priorities, and formulate strategies for tackling these within their communities. It was completed between November 2001 and January 2002.

Geographic coverage

National coverage

Analysis unit

Households

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

SAMPLE SIZE AND ANALYTIC DOMAINS

A survey relies on identifying a subgroup of a population that is representative both for the underlying population and for specific analytical domains of interest. The main objective of the TLSS is to derive a poverty profile for the country and salient population groups. The fundamental analytic domains identified are the Major Urban Centers (Dili and Baucau), the Other Urban Centers and the Rural Areas. The survey represents certain important sub-divisions of the Rural Areas, namely two major agro-ecologic zones (Lowlands and Highlands) and three broad geographic regions (West, Center and East). In addition to these domains, we can separate landlocked sucos (Inland) from those with sea access (Coast), and generate categories merging rural and urban strata along the geographic, altitude, and sea access dimensions. However, the TLSS does not provide detailed indicators for narrow geographic areas, such as postos or even districts. [Note: Timor-Leste is divided into 13 major units called districts. These are further subdivided into 67 postos (subdistricts), 498 sucos (villages) and 2,336 aldeias (sub-villages). The administrative structure is uniform throughout the country, including rural and urban areas.] The survey has a sample size of 1,800 households, or about one percent of the total number of households in Timor-Leste. The experience of Living Standards Measurement Surveys in many countries - most of them substantially larger than Timor-Leste - has shown that samples of that size are sufficient for the requirements of a poverty assessment. The survey domains were defined as follows. The Urban Area is divided into the Major Urban Centers (the 31 sucos in Dili and the 6 sucos in Baucau) and the Other Urban Centers (the remaining 34 urban sucos outside Dili and Baucau). The rest of the country (427 sucos in total) comprises the Rural Area. The grouping of sucos into urban and rural areas is based on the Indonesian classification. In addition, we separated rural sucos both by agro-ecological zones and geographic areas. With the help of the Geographic Information System developed at the Department of Agriculture, sucos were subsequently qualified as belonging to the Highlands or the Lowlands depending on the share of their surface above and below the 500 m level curve. The three westernmost districts (Oecussi, Bobonaro and Cova Lima) constitute the Western Region, the three easternmost districts (Baucau, Lautem and Viqueque) the Eastern Region, and the remaining seven districts (Aileu, Ainaro, Dili, Ermera, Liquica, Manufahi and Manatuto) belong to the Central Region.

SAMPLING STRATA AND SAMPLE ALLOCATION

Our next step was to ensure that each analytical domain contained a sufficient number of households. Assuming a uniform sampling fraction of approximately 1/100, a non-stratified 1,800-household sample would contain around 240 Major Urban households and 170 Other Urban households -too few to sustain representative and significant analyses. We therefore stratified the sample to separate the two urban areas from the rural areas. The rural strata were large enough so that its implicit stratification along agro-ecological and geographical dimensions was sufficient to ensure that these dimensions were represented proportionally to their share of the population. The final sample design by strata was as follows: 450 households in the Major Urban Centers (378 in Dili and 72 in Baucau), 252 households in the Other Urban Centers and 1,098 households in the Rural Areas.

SAMPLING STRATEGY

The sampling of households in each stratum, with the exception of Urban Dili, followed a 3-stage procedure. In the first stage, a certain number of sucos were selected with probability proportional to size (PPS). Hence 4 sucos were selected in Urban Baucau, 14 in Other Urban Centers and 61 in the Rural Areas. In the second stage, 3 aldeias in each suco were selected, again with probability proportional to size (PPS). In the third stage, 6 households were selected in each aldeia with equal probability (EP). This implies that the sample is approximately selfweighted within the stratum: all households in the stratum had the same chance of being visited by the survey. A simpler and more efficient 2-stage process was used for Urban Dili. In the first stage, 63 aldeias were selected with PPS and in the second stage 6 households with equal probability in each aldeia (for a total sample of 378 households). This procedure reduces sampling errors since the sample will be spread more than with the standard 3-stage process, but it can only be applied to Urban Dili as only there it was possible to sort the selected aldeias into groups of 3 aldeias located in close proximity of each other.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Cleaning operations

1. DATA ENTRY

A decentralized approach to data entry was adopted in Timor-Leste. Data entry proceeded side by side with data gathering with the help of laptops to ensure verification and correction in the field. The purpose of this procedure was twofold. First, it reduced the time of data processing because it was not necessary to send the questionnaires to the central office to be entered. More important, data were available for analysis very soon after the fieldwork was completed. And second, it allowed for immediate and extensive checks on data quality. Any inconsistency revealed at this stage was to be rectified by revisiting the households while still being in the village, and so, the need for later data editing was minimized. A second round of standard checks on data quality was also implemented in the project office in Dili upon retrieval of the data from the field teams. In general, with a few exceptions, the analysis has confirmed the high quality of the data entry and validation processes. The data entry program was designed to check for data entry errors, coding mistakes, as well as to search for incomplete or inaccurate data collection. It was based upon two major types of checks.

1. CHECKS

On the one hand, standard value-range checks were included. If the data entry operator entered data, which was outside the bounds of the programmed range, either because the number was not a pre-coded one or because it was extremely unlikely, the program would alert him. On the other hand, it also contained a series of checks to ensure that the data collected were internally consistent. The skip program used in the questionnaire was programmed into the data entry software to ensure that the information entered was consistent to the desired skip pattern. For instance, if the code “3” was entered by mistake in a question where the only valid responses were “1” or “2”, the program would alert the operator. Similarly, if the household reported having purchased a particular good, the program would check to see if information on quantities and expenditure was also reported. However, if the data entered into the

According to the survey, as of February 2023, four out of the six countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council ranked amongst the top ** in the world for expatriate quality of life. Qatar and the United Arab Emirates topped the list for quality of life, whereas Saudi Arabia and Kuwait came last in the region. Quality of life; an amalgamation of many metrics Since quality of life is dependent on many indicators, it can give us a good insight into many aspects of state welfare policies and services. Saudi Arabia, where the number of foreign workers in the private sector topped *** million, also ranked as having one of the region's lowest quality of life for expatriates. Qatar, which had the second-highest quality of life for expatriates living in the GCC, was ranked as one of the most challenging countries in the region for ease of settling in. The UAE and Qatar, both of which ranked the highest in the survey, also have the highest average salaries and living standards in the region. Foreign workers are a key pillar of the GCC economy Countries in the GCC all have sizable expatriate populations for which their economies are heavily reliant. Roughly ********** of the workforce in the GCC is foreign. Although the share of foreign workers in the GCC has slightly decreased in recent years, they still considerably outweigh the local workforce. Most of these workers comprise the unskilled portion of the occupational category in the GCC. However, with diversifying investments and programs such as Vision 2030, countries have seen a rise in the number of skilled foreign workers.

Abstract

The principal objective of this survey is to collect basic data reflecting the actual living conditions of the population in Tajikistan. These data will then be used for evaluating socio-economic development and formulating policies to improve living conditions.

The first assessment of living standards in Tajikistan was conducted in 1999. This assessment is bringing about data in order to update the 1999 assessment.

The survey collects information on education, health, employment and other productive activities, demographic characteristics, migration, housing conditions, expenditures and assets.

The information gathered is intended to improve economic and social policy in Tajikistan. It should enable decision-makers to 1) identify target groups for government assistance, 2) inform programs of socio-economic development, and 3) analyse the impact of decisions already made and the current economic conditions on households.

Geographic coverage

National coverage. The 2003 data are representative at the regional level (4 regions) and urban/rural.

Analysis unit

• Households
• Individuals
• Communites

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

The Tajikistan Living Standards Survey (TLSS) for 2003 was based on a stratified random probability sample, with the sample stratified according to oblast and urban/rural settlements and with the share of each strata in the overall sample being in proportion to its share in the total number of households as recorded in the 2000 Census. The same approach was used in the TLSS 1999 although there were some differences in the sampling. First the share of each strata in the overall sample in 1999 was determined according to 'best estimates', as it was conducted prior to the 2000 Census. Second the TLSS 2003 over-sampled by 40 percent in Dushanbe, 300 percent in rural Gorno-Badakhshan Administrative Oblast (GBAO) and 600 percent in urban GBAO. Third the sample size was increased in 2003 in comparison with 1999 in order to reduce sampling error. In 2003, the overall sample size was 4,156 households compared with 2,000 households in 1999. [Note: Taken from "Republic of Tajikistan: Poverty Assessment Update", Report No. 30853, Human Development Sector Unit, Central Asia Country Unit, Europe and Central Asia Region, World Bank, January 2005.]

In addition to the capital city of Dushanbe, the country has several oblasts (regions): (i) Khatlon (comprising Kurban-Tube and Khulyab), which is an agricultural area with most of the country's cotton growing districts; (ii) the Rayons of Republican Subordination (RRS) with the massive aluminum smelter in the west and agricultural valleys in the east growing crops other than cotton; (iii) Sugd which is the most industrialized oblast; and (iv) Gorno-Badakhshan Administrative Oblast which is mountainous and remote with a small population.

The 2003 data are representative at the regional level (4 regions) and urban/rural.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Geneva, Switzerland, was the most expensive city to buy an apartment in Europe in the first quarter of 2024. The square meter price in Geneva was nearly 15,650 euros in that quarter, about 2,000 euros higher than the second city in the ranking, Zurich. Cost of rent Rents across the major cities in Europe increased significantly in 2023. One of the main factors driving high rents across European cities is the same as any other consumer-driven business. If demand outweighs supply, prices will inflate. The drive for high paid professionals to be located centrally in prime locations, mixed with the low levels of available space, high land, and construction costs, all help keep rental prices increasing. Mortgage rates The average mortgage interest rates across Europe in 2023 were all under five percent, except in Czechia, Romania, Hungary, and Poland. On an individual level, a difference of one percent would most likely mean thousands of euros in interest on the mortgage a person is paying, making timing key in house purchasing. Mortgage interest rates tend to be lower in Nordic countries due to the financial stability and reliability of its borrowers. Other factors that influence the mortgage interest rates include inflation, economic growth, monetary policies, the bond market and the overall conditions of the housing market. More stable markets also tend to have higher average prices.

Abstract

In 1992, Bosnia-Herzegovina, one of the six republics in former Yugoslavia, became an independent nation. A civil war started soon thereafter, lasting until 1995 and causing widespread destruction and losses of lives. Following the Dayton accord, BosniaHerzegovina (BiH) emerged as an independent state comprised of two entities, namely, the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina (FBiH) and the Republika Srpska (RS), and the district of Brcko. In addition to the destruction caused to the physical infrastructure, there was considerable social disruption and decline in living standards for a large section of the population. Alongside these events, a period of economic transition to a market economy was occurring. The distributive impacts of this transition, both positive and negative, are unknown. In short, while it is clear that welfare levels have changed, there is very little information on poverty and social indicators on which to base policies and programs. In the post-war process of rebuilding the economic and social base of the country, the government has faced the problems created by having little relevant data at the household level. The three statistical organizations in the country (State Agency for Statistics for BiH -BHAS, the RS Institute of Statistics-RSIS, and the FBiH Institute of Statistics-FIS) have been active in working to improve the data available to policy makers: both at the macro and the household level. One facet of their activities is to design and implement a series of household series. The first of these surveys is the Living Standards Measurement Study survey (LSMS). Later surveys will include the Household Budget Survey (an Income and Expenditure Survey) and a Labour Force Survey. A subset of the LSMS households will be re-interviewed in the two years following the LSMS to create a panel data set.

The three statistical organizations began work on the design of the Living Standards Measurement Study Survey (LSMS) in 1999. The purpose of the survey was to collect data needed for assessing the living standards of the population and for providing the key indicators needed for social and economic policy formulation. The survey was to provide data at the country and the entity level and to allow valid comparisons between entities to be made. The LSMS survey was carried out in the Fall of 2001 by the three statistical organizations with financial and technical support from the Department for International Development of the British Government (DfID), United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Japanese Government, and the World Bank (WB). The creation of a Master Sample for the survey was supported by the Swedish Government through SIDA, the European Commission, the Department for International Development of the British Government and the World Bank. The overall management of the project was carried out by the Steering Board, comprised of the Directors of the RS and FBiH Statistical Institutes, the Management Board of the State Agency for Statistics and representatives from DfID, UNDP and the WB. The day-to-day project activities were carried out by the Survey Management Team, made up of two professionals from each of the three statistical organizations. The Living Standard Measurement Survey LSMS, in addition to collecting the information necessary to obtain a comprehensive as possible measure of the basic dimensions of household living standards, has three basic objectives, as follows: 1. To provide the public sector, government, the business community, scientific institutions, international donor organizations and social organizations with information on different indicators of the population's living conditions, as well as on available resources for satisfying basic needs. 2. To provide information for the evaluation of the results of different forms of government policy and programs developed with the aim to improve the population's living standard. The survey will enable the analysis of the relations between and among different aspects of living standards (housing, consumption, education, health, labour) at a given time, as well as within a household. 3. To provide key contributions for development of government's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, based on analysed data.

Geographic coverage

National coverage

Analysis unit

Households

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

(a) SAMPLE SIZE A total sample of 5,400 households was determined to be adequate for the needs of the survey: with 2,400 in the Republika Srpska and 3,000 in the Federation of BiH. The difficulty was in selecting a probability sample that would be representative of the country's population. The sample design for any survey depends upon the availability of information on the universe of households and individuals in the country. Usually this comes from a census or administrative records. In the case of BiH the most recent census was done in 1991. The data from this census were rendered obsolete due to both the simple passage of time but, more importantly, due to the massive population displacements that occurred during the war. At the initial stages of this project it was decided that a master sample should be constructed. Experts from Statistics Sweden developed the plan for the master sample and provided the procedures for its construction. From this master sample, the households for the LSMS were selected. Master Sample [This section is based on Peter Lynn's note "LSMS Sample Design and Weighting - Summary". April, 2002. Essex University, commissioned by DfID.] The master sample is based on a selection of municipalities and a full enumeration of the selected municipalities. Optimally, one would prefer smaller units (geographic or administrative) than municipalities. However, while it was considered that the population estimates of municipalities were reasonably accurate, this was not the case for smaller geographic or administrative areas. To avoid the error involved in sampling smaller areas with very uncertain population estimates, municipalities were used as the base unit for the master sample. The Statistics Sweden team proposed two options based on this same method, with the only difference being in the number of municipalities included and enumerated.

(b) SAMPLE DESIGN For reasons of funding, the smaller option proposed by the team was used, or Option B. Stratification of Municipalities The first step in creating the Master Sample was to group the 146 municipalities in the country into three strata- Urban, Rural and Mixed - within each of the two entities. Urban municipalities are those where 65 percent or more of the households are considered to be urban, and rural municipalities are those where the proportion of urban households is below 35 percent. The remaining municipalities were classified as Mixed (Urban and Rural) Municipalities. Brcko was excluded from the sampling frame. Urban, Rural and Mixed Municipalities: It is worth noting that the urban-rural definitions used in BiH are unusual with such large administrative units as municipalities classified as if they were completely homogeneous. Their classification into urban, rural, mixed comes from the 1991 Census which used the predominant type of income of households in the municipality to define the municipality. This definition is imperfect in two ways. First, the distribution of income sources may have changed dramatically from the pre-war times: populations have shifted, large industries have closed, and much agricultural land remains unusable due to the presence of land mines. Second, the definition is not comparable to other countries' where villages, towns and cities are classified by population size into rural or urban or by types of services and infrastructure available. Clearly, the types of communities within a municipality vary substantially in terms of both population and infrastructure. However, these imperfections are not detrimental to the sample design (the urban/rural definition may not be very useful for analysis purposes, but that is a separate issue).

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Cleaning operations

(a) DATA ENTRY

An integrated approach to data entry and fieldwork was adopted in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Data entry proceeded side by side with data gathering to ensure verification and correction in the field. Data entry stations were located in the regional offices of the entity institutes and were equipped with computers, modem and a dedicated telephone line. The completed questionnaires were delivered to these stations each day for data entry. Twenty data entry operators (10 from Federation and 10 from RS) were trained in two training sessions held for a week each in Sarajevo and Banja Luka. The trainers were the staff of the two entity institutes who had undergone training in the CSPro software earlier and had participated in the workshops of the Pilot survey. Prior to the training, laptop computers were provided to the entity institutes, and the CSPro software was installed in them. The training for the data entry operators covered the following elements:

• Introduction to the LSMS Survey questionnaire; Introduction to the personal computers/ lap top computers; Copying data on diskette and printing of output
• The Data entry programme (CSPro). Understanding of the Round 1 data entry screens (Modules 1-10)
• Practice of Round 1 (data entry trainees enter questionnaires completed by interviewer trainees during practice interviews)
• Understanding of Round 2 Data entry screen (Modules 11-13)
• Practice of Round 2 Data entry screens (data entry trainees entered the questionnaires completed by interviewer trainees)
• Control Procedures; Copying

There is more to life than the cold numbers of GDP and economic statistics. This dataset contains the 2018 data of the Better Life Index which allows you to compare well-being across countries as well as measuring well-being, based on 11 topics the OECD has identified as essential, in the areas of material living conditions and quality of life. Abstract: Your Better Life Index aims to involve citizens in the debate on measuring the well-being of societies, and to empower them to become more informed and engaged in the policy-making process that shapes all our lives. Each of the 11 topics of the Index is currently based on one to three indicators. Within each topic, the indicators are averaged with equal weights. The indicators have been chosen on the basis of a number of statistical criteria such as relevance (face-validity, depth, policy relevance) and data quality (predictive validity, coverage, timeliness, cross-country comparability etc.) and in consultation with OECD member countries. These indicators are good measures of the concepts of well-being, in particular in the context of a country comparative exercise. Other indicators will gradually be added to each topic. Notes: Data cannot be compared between different editions of the Better Life Index. For more information on change over time, please contact wellbeing@oecd.org.

Abstract

The purpose of the Tajikistan LSS surveys has been to provide quantitative data at the individual, household and community level that will facilitate purposeful policy design on issues of welfare and living standards of the population of the Republic of Tajikistan. Since 2007, the studies have been done in collaboration with World Bank and UNICEF and implementation by Tajik National Committee for Statistics. The 2007 LSS survey is based on the 2003 LSS and 2005 MICS survey with additional questions and modules

Geographic coverage

National

Analysis unit

Households

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

A detailed description of the sampling methodology is available in appendix to the document "Basic Information Document".

The Tajikistan LSS sample was designed to allow reliable estimation of poverty and most variables for a variety of other living standard indicators at the various domains of interest based on a representative probability sample on the level of: • Tajikistan as a whole
• Total urban and total rural areas • The five main administrative regions (oblasts) of the country: Dushanbe, Rayons of Republican Subordination (RRS), Sogd, Khatlon, and Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO)

The last census was conducted in 2000 and covered all five main administrative regions (oblasts) of the country (Dushanbe, RRS, Sogd, Khatlon, and GBAO). Each oblast was further subdivided into smaller areas called census section, instructor's sector and enumeration sector (ES). Each ES is either totally urban or rural. The list of ESs has census information on the population of each ES, and the ES lists were grouped by oblast.

In 2005, UNICEF implemented a Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MIC-05) in Tajikistan during which an electronic database of the ES information was created. Information in this database included: oblast, rayon, jamoat, settlement type, city/village, ES code, and population. Information from this database was used in the sample design of the TLSS07.

The total number of clusters for the Tajikistan LSS 2007 was established as 270 and total number of households per cluster was established as 18, resulting in a sample size of 4,860. The sample size was determined by considering: • The reliability of the survey estimates on both regional and national level • Quality of the data collected for the survey • Cost in time for the data collection • An oversample in 7 rayons in Khatlon

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Cleaning operations

Data Entry and Cleaning

The data entry program was designed using CSPro, a data entry package developed by the US Census Bureau. This software allows programs to be developed to perform three types of data checks: (a) range checks; (b) intra-record checks to verify inconsistencies pertinent to the particular module of the questionnaire; and (c) inter-record checks to determine inconsistencies between the different modules of the questionnaire.

The data from the First Round were key entered at the Goskomstat headquarters in Dushanbe starting 4 October 2007 through 25 November 2007. The Second Round and Sughd data were key entered from 26 November 2007 through 12 December 2007. All of the data were double entered with both the First Round, Second Round and Sughd re-collection double entry being completed by 22 January 2008.

Data appraisal

The data cleaning process began in February 2008 and was completed at the end of May 2008.

How to Use the Data:

There are three separate data bases with the data from the TLSS07. The data from each data collection is maintained separately. The data sets have similar names in each of the three separate data collections. First Round data sets have names in the form of "r1mnp" where "n" is the number of the module, and "p" is the part of the module (if any). Data from the Subjective Poverty module would be stored as "r1m9" and data from the Migration module, Part C Family Members Living Away from the Household would be stored as "r1m2c". Second Round data set names have a similar form "r2mnp". Data sets from the Sughd collection replace the "m" of the First Round with "sm", such as sm12a1.

The variable names have a similar format. Each variable name includes the module in which the variable is found and the question number. For example, question 10 in Module 4 Health, Part B Utilization of Outpatient Health Care is "m4b_q10". The variable names in all three of the data collections have the same format.

In addition to the individual roster files for each data base, there is also one roster file for all three data bases, rosterall. This roster file contains the information on all of the households and household members who are included in the data. There is a variable (source) indicating if the household/member is: (a) in Round 1 only; (b) in Round 2 only; (c) in Round 1 and Round 2; or (d) in the Sughd data. It is important to pay attention to this variable as the recall periods for the Subjective Poverty and Food Security Module (9A) is the last 4 weeks in the First Round, but changed to the last 2 weeks in the Second Round and the Sughd collection. In addition, the order of the question in the Expenditure On Food In The Last 7 Days, Module 10, changed

Abstract

The Integrated Survey of Living Standards (ISLS), renamed in 2004 to Integrated Survey of Living Conditions Survey (ILCS) is conducted annually by the NSS National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia, formed the basis for monitoring living conditions in Armenia. The ILCS is a universally recognized best-practice survey for collecting data to inform about the living standards of households. The ILCS comprises comprehensive and valuable data on the welfare of households and separate individuals which gives the NSS an opportunity to provide the public with up to date information on the population’s income, expenditures, the level of poverty and the other changes in living standards on an annual basis.

Geographic coverage

Urban and rural communities

Analysis unit

• Households;
• Individuals.

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

During the 2001-2003 surveys two-stage random sample was used; the first stage covered the selection of settlements - cities and villages, while the second stage was focused on the selection of households in these settlements. The surveys were conducted on the principle of monthly rotation of households by clusters (sample units). In 2002 and 2003 the number of households was 387 with the sample covering 14 cities and 30 villages in 2002 and 17 cities and 20 villages in 2003.

During the 2004-2006 surveys the sampling frame for the ILCS was built using the database of addresses for the 2001 Population Census; the database was developed with the World Bank technical assistance. The database of addresses of all households in Armenia was divided into 48 strata including 12 communities of Yerevan city. The households from other regions (marzes) were grouped according to the following three categories: big towns with 15,000 and more population; villages, and other towns. Big towns formed 16 strata (the only exception was the Vayots Dzor marz where there are no big towns). The villages and other towns formed 10 strata each. According to this division, a random, two-step sample stratified at marz level was developed. All marzes, as well as all urban and rural settlements were included in the sample population according to the share of population residing in those settlements as percent to the total population in the country. In the first step, the settlements, i.e. primary sample units, were selected: 43 towns out of 48 or 90 percent of all towns in Armenia were surveyed during the year; also 216 villages out of 951 or 23 percent of all villages in the country were covered by the survey. In the second step, the respondent households were selected: 6,816 households (5,088 from urban and 1,728 from rural settlements). As a result, for the first time since 1996 survey data were representative at the marz level.

During the 2007-2012 surveys the sampling frame for ILCS was designed according to the database of addresses for the 2001 Population Census, which was developed with the World Bank technical assistance. The sample consisted of two parts: core sample and oversample.

1) For the creation of core sample, the sample frame (database of addresses of all households in Armenia) was divided into 48 strata including 12 communities of Yerevan city. The households from other regions (marzes) were grouped according to three categories: large towns (with population of 15000 and higher), villages and other towns. Large towns formed by 16 groups (strata), while the villages and towns formed by 10 strata each. According to that division, a random, two-step sample stratified at the marz level was developed. All marzes, as well as all urban and rural settlements were included in the sample population according to the share of households residing in those settlements as percent to the total households in the country. In the first step, using the PPS method the enumeration units (i.e., primary sample units to be surveyed during the year) were selected. 2007 sample includes 48 urban and 18 rural enumeration areas per month. 2) The oversample was drawn from the list of villages included in MCA-Armenia Rural Roads Rehabilitation Project. The enumeration areas of villages that were already in the core sample were excluded from that list. From the remaining enumeration areas 18 enumeration areas were selected per month. Thus, the rural sample size was doubled. 3) After merging the core sample and oversample, the survey households were selected in the second step. 656 households were surveyed per month, from which 368 from urban and 288 from rural settlements. Each month 82 interviewers had conducted field work, and their workload included 8 households per month. In 2007 number of surveyed households was 7,872 (4,416 from urban and 3,456 from rural areas).

For the survey 2013 the sample frame for ILCS was designed in accordance with the database of addresses of all private households in the country developed on basis of the 2001 Population Census results, with the technical assistance of the World Bank. The method of systematic representative probability sampling was used to frame the sample. For the purpose of drawing the sample, the sample frame was divided into 32 strata including 12 communities of Yerevan City (currently, the administrative districts). According to this division, a two-tier sample was drawn stratified by regions and by Yerevan. All regions and Yerevan, as well as all urban and rural communities were included in the sample in accordance to the shares of their resident households within the total number of households in the country. In the first round, enumeration areas - that is primary sample units to be surveyed during the year - were selected. The ILCS 2013 sample included 32 enumeration areas in urban and 16 enumeration areas in rural communities per month. The households to be surveyed were selected in the second round. A total of 432 households were surveyed per month, of which 279 and 153 households from urban and rural communities, respectively. Every month 48 interviewers went on field work with a workload of 9 households per month.

The sample frame for 2014-2016 was designed in accordance with the database of addresses of all private households in the country developed on basis of the 2011 Population Census results, with the technical assistance of the World Bank. The method of systematic representative probability sampling was used to frame the sample.
For drawing the sample, the sample frame was divided into 32 strata including 12 communities of Yerevan City (currently, the administrative districts). According to this division, a two-tier sample was drawn stratified by regions and by Yerevan. All regions and Yerevan, as well as all urban and rural communities were included in the sample in accordance to the shares of their resident households within the total number of households in the country. In the first round, enumeration areas - that is primary sample units to be surveyed during the year - were selected. The ILCS 2014 sample included 30 enumeration areas in urban and 18 enumeration areas in rural communities per month. The method of representative probability sampling was used to frame the sample. At regional level, all communities were grouped into two categories - towns and villages. According to this division, a two-tier sample was drawn stratified by regions and by Yerevan. All regions and Yerevan, as well as all rural and urban communities were included in the sample in accordance to the shares of their resident households within the total number of households in the country. In the first round, enumeration districts - that is primary sample units to be surveyed during the year - were selected. The ILCS 2015 sample included 30 enumeration districts in urban and 18 enumeration districts in rural communities per month.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

The Questionnaire is filled in by the interviewer during the least five visits to households per month. During face-to-face interviews with the household head or another knowledgeable adult member, the interviewer collects information on the composition and housing conditions of the household, the employment status, educational level and health condition of the members, availability and use of land, livestock, and agricultural machinery, monetary and commodity flows between households, and other information.

The 2001 survey questionnaire had the following sections: (1) "List of Household Members", (2) "Housing Facilities", (3) "Migration", (4) "Education", (5) "Agriculture", (6) "Monetary and Commodity Flows between Households", (7) "Health (General) and Healthcare", (8) "Savings and Debts", (9) "Social Assistance".

The Diary is completed directly by the household for one month. Every day the household would record all its expenditures on food, non-food products and services, also giving a detailed description of such purchases; e.g. for food products the name, quantity, cost, and place of purchase of the product is recorded. Besides, the household records its consumption of food products received and used from its own land and livestock, as well as from other sources (e.g. gifts, humanitarian aid). Non-food products and services purchased or received for free are also recorded in the diary. Then, the household records its income received during the month. At the end of the month, information on rarely used food products, durable goods and ceremonies is recorded, as well. The records in the diary are verified by the interviewer in the course of 5 mandatory visits to the household during the survey month.

The Survey Diary has the following sections: (1) food purchased during the day, (2) food consumed at home

The Nepal Living Standards Survey, 1995/96 (NLSS-I) was a milestone in the collection of data for the objective measurement of the living standards of the people and for determining the level of poverty in the country. The survey covered a wide range of topics related to “household welfare” (demography, consumption, income, access to facilities, housing, education, health, employment, credit, remittances and anthropometry, etc.). NLSS-I for the first time, provided a measure of “extent and dimension” of poverty in Nepal. The survey findings became popular among decision makers in the government agencies, the general public and the international agencies as well. It was realized that a second round of the survey was needed to update the results and to assess the impact of policies and programs on poverty and social indicators over the years (since the NLSS-I was conducted). Accordingly, the second round of the survey (NLSS-II) was carried out in 2003/04 after 8 years of the first survey. The findings of the NLSS-II helped the government to monitor progress in improving national living standards and the survey became a good basis for monitoring the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) over time. Realizing the importance of time series data, the Government of Nepal decided to conduct another round of the Nepal Living Standards Survey. Accordingly, the Central Bureau of Statistics for the third time conducted the survey in 2010/11 (NLSS-III). The survey was carried out with the assistance from the World Bank. Objective of the Survey The main objective of the NLSS-III is to update data on the living standards of the people. The survey aims to assess the impact of various government policies and programs on the socioeconomic changes in the country during the last 7 years. Further, the survey aims to track changes experienced by previously enumerated households during the past fifteen and seven years.

In 2025, Luxembourg was the country with the highest gross domestic product per capita in the world. Of the 20 listed countries, 13 are in Europe and five are in Asia, alongside the U.S. and Australia. There are no African or Latin American countries among the top 20. Correlation with high living standards While GDP is a useful indicator for measuring the size or strength of an economy, GDP per capita is much more reflective of living standards. For example, when compared to life expectancy or indices such as the Human Development Index or the World Happiness Report, there is a strong overlap - 14 of the 20 countries on this list are also ranked among the 20 happiest countries in 2024, and all 20 have "very high" HDIs. Misleading metrics? GDP per capita figures, however, can be misleading, and to paint a fuller picture of a country's living standards then one must look at multiple metrics. GDP per capita figures can be skewed by inequalities in wealth distribution, and in countries such as those in the Middle East, a relatively large share of the population lives in poverty while a smaller number live affluent lifestyles.

In 1992, Bosnia-Herzegovina, one of the six republics in former Yugoslavia, became an independent nation. A civil war started soon thereafter, lasting until 1995 and causing widespread destruction and losses of lives. Following the Dayton accord, BosniaHerzegovina (BiH) emerged as an independent state comprised of two entities, namely, the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina (FBiH) and the Republika Srpska (RS), and the district of Brcko. In addition to the destruction caused to the physical infrastructure, there was considerable social disruption and decline in living standards for a large section of the population. Along side these events, a period of economic transition to a market economy was occurring. The distributive impacts of this transition, both positive and negative, are unknown. In short, while it is clear that welfare levels have changed, there is very little information on poverty and social indicators on which to base policies and programs. In the post-war process of rebuilding the economic and social base of the country, the government has faced the problems created by having little relevant data at the household level. The three statistical organizations in the country (State Agency for Statistics for BiH –BHAS, the RS Institute of Statistics-RSIS, and the FBiH Institute of Statistics-FIS) have been active in working to improve the data available to policy makers: both at the macro and the household level. One facet of their activities is to design and implement a series of household series. The first of these surveys is the Living Standards Measurement Study survey (LSMS). Later surveys will include the Household Budget Survey (an Income and Expenditure Survey) and a Labor Force Survey. A subset of the LSMS households will be re-interviewed in the two years following the LSMS to create a panel data set. The three statistical organizations began work on the design of the Living Standards Measurement Study Survey (LSMS) in 1999. The purpose of the survey was to collect data needed for assessing the living standards of the population and for providing the key indicators needed for social and economic policy formulation. The survey was to provide data at the country and the entity level and to allow valid comparisons between entities to be made. The LSMS survey was carried out in the Fall of 2001 by the three statistical organizations with financial and technical support from the Department for International Development of the British Government (DfID), United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Japanese Government, and the World Bank (WB). The creation of a Master Sample for the survey was supported by the Swedish Government through SIDA, the European Commission, the Department for International Development of the British Government and the World Bank. The overall management of the project was carried out by the Steering Board, comprised of the Directors of the RS and FBiH Statistical Institutes, the Management Board of the State Agency for Statistics and representatives from DfID, UNDP and the WB. The day-to-day project activities were carried out by the Survey Mangement Team, made up of two professionals from each of the three statistical organizations. The Living Standard Measurement Survey LSMS, in addition to collecting the information necessary to obtain a comprehensive as possible measure of the basic dimensions of household living standards, has three basic objectives, as follows: 1. To provide the public sector, government, the business community, scientific institutions, international donor organizations and social organizations with information on different indicators of the population’s living conditions, as well as on available resources for satisfying basic needs. 2. To provide information for the evaluation of the results of different forms of government policy and programs developed with the aim to improve the population’s living standard. The survey will enable the analysis of the relations between and among different aspects of living standards (housing, consumption, education, health, labor) at a given time, as well as within a household. 3. To provide key contributions for development of government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, based on analyzed data.

Abstract

Over the past decade, Albania has been seeking to develop the framework for a market economy and more open society. It has faced severe internal and external challenges in the interim - extremely low income levels and a lack of basic infrastructure, the rapid collapse of output and inflation rise after the shift in regime in 1991, the turmoil during the 1997 pyramid crisis, and the social and economic shocks accompanying the 1999 Kosovo crisis. In the face of these challenges, Albania has made notable progress in creating conditions conducive to growth and poverty reduction. A poverty profile based on 1996 data (the most recent available) showed that some 30 percent of the rural and some 15 percent of the urban population are poor, with many others vulnerable to poverty due to their incomes being close to the poverty threshold. Income related poverty is compounded by the severe lack of access to basic infrastructure, education and health services, clean water, etc., and the ability of the Government to address these issues is complicated by high levels of internal and external migration that are not well understood. To date, the paucity of household-level information has been a constraining factor in the design, implementation and evaluation of economic and social programs in Albania. Multi-purpose household surveys are one of the main sources of information to determine living conditions and measure the poverty situation of a country and provide an indispensable tool to assist policymakers in monitoring and targeting social programs. Two recent surveys carried out by the Albanian Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) - the 1998 Living Conditions Survey (LCS) and the 2000 Household Budget Survey (HBS) - drew attention, once again, to the need for accurately measuring household welfare according to well accepted standards, and for monitoring these trends on a regular basis. In spite of their narrow scope and limitations, these two surveys have provided the country with an invaluable training ground towards the development of a permanent household survey system to support the government strategic planning in its fight against poverty. In the process leading to its first Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP; also known in Albania as Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy, GPRS), the Government of Albania reinforced its commitment to strengthening its own capacity to collect and analyse on a regular basis the information it needs to inform policy-making. In its first phase (2001-2006), this monitoring system will include the following data collection instruments:

(i) Population and Housing Census (ii) Living Standards Measurement Surveys every 3 years (iii) annual panel surveys.

The Population and Housing Census (PHC) conducted in April 2001, provided the country with a much needed updated sampling frame which is one of the building blocks for the household survey structure. The focus during this first phase of the monitoring system is on a periodic LSMS (in 2002 and 2005), followed by panel surveys on a sub-sample of LSMS households (in 2003, 2004 and 2006), drawing heavily on the 2001 census information. The possibility to include a panel component in the second LSMS will be considered at a later stage, based on the experience accumulated with the first panels. The 2002 LSMS was in the field between April and early July, with some field activities (the community and price questionnaires) extending into August and September. The survey work was undertaken by the Living Standards unit of INSTAT, with the technical assistance of the World Bank. The present document provides detailed information on this survey. Section II summarizes the content of the survey instruments used. Section III focuses on the details of the sample design. Sections IV describes the pilot test and fieldwork procedures of the survey, as well as the training received by survey staff. Section V reviews data entry and data cleaning issues. Finally, section VI contains a series of annotations that all those interested in using the data should read.

Geographic coverage

National

Analysis unit

Households

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

(a) SAMPLING FRAME

The Republic of Albania is divided geographically into 12 Prefectures (Prefekturat). The latter are divided into Districts (Rrethet) which are, in turn, divided into Cities (Qyteti) and Communes (Komunat). The Communes contain all the rural villages and the very small cities. For the April 2001 General Census of Population and Housing census purposes, the cities and the villages were divided into Enumeration Areas (EAs). These formed the basis for the LSMS sampling frame. The EAs in the frame are classified by Prefecture, District, City or Commune. The frame also contains, for every EA, the number of Housing Units (HUs), the number of occupied HUs, the number of unoccupied HUs, and the number of households. Occupied dwellings rather than total number of dwellings were used since many census EAs contain a large number of empty dwellings. The Housing Unit (defined as the space occupied by one household) was taken as the sampling unit, instead of the household, because the HU is more permanent and easier to identify in the field. A detailed review of the list of censuses EAs shows that many have zero population. In order to obtain EAs with a minimum of 50 and a maximum of 120 occupied housing units, the EAs with zero population were first removed from the sampling frame. Then, the smallest EAs (with less than 50 HU) were collapsed with geographically adjacent ones and the largest EAs (with more than 120 HU) were split into two or more EAs. Subsequently, maps identifying the boundaries of every split and collapsed EA were prepared Sample Size and Implementation Since the 2002 LSMS had been conducted about a year after the April 2001 census, a listing operation to update the sample EAs was not conducted. However, given the rapid speed at which new constructions and demolitions of buildings take place in the city of Tirana and its suburbs, a quick count of the 75 sample EAs was carried out followed by a listing operation. The listing sheets prepared during the listing operation became the sampling frame for the final stage of selection. The final sample design for the 2002 LSMS included 450 Primary Sampling Units (PSUs) and 8 households in each PSU, for a total of 3600 households. Four reserve units were selected in each sample PSU to act as replacement unit in non-response cases. In a few cases in which the rate of migration was particularly high and more than four of the originally selected households could not be found for the interview, additional households for the same PSU were randomly selected. During the implementation of the survey there was a problem with the management of the questionnaires for a household that had initially refused, but later accepted, to fill in the food diary. The original household questionnaire was lost in the process and it was not possible to match the diary with a valid household questionnaire. The household had therefore to be dropped from the sample (this happened in Shkoder, PSU 16). The final sample size is therefore of 3599 households.

(b) STRATIFICATION

The sampling frame was divided in four regions (strata), Coastal Area, Central Area, and Mountain Area, and Tirana (urban and other urban). These four strata were further divided into major cities, other urban, and other rural. The EAs were selected proportionately to the number of housing units in these areas. In the city of Tirana and its suburbs, implicit stratification was used to improve the efficiency of the sample design. The implicit stratification was performed by ordering the EAs in the sampling frame in a geographic serpentine fashion within each stratum used for the independent selection of EAs.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Cleaning operations

(a) QUALITY CHECKS Besides the checks built-in in the DE program and those performed on the preliminary versions of the dataset as it was building up, and additional round of in depth checks on the household questionnaire and the food diary was performed in late September and early October in Tirana. Wherever possible data entry errors or inconsistencies in the dataset were spotted, the original questionnaires or diary were retrieved, and the information contained therein checked. Changes were made to the August version of the dataset as needed and the dataset was finalized in October.

(b) DATA ENTRY Data Entry Operations Data entry for all the survey instruments was performed using custom made applications developed in CS-Pro. Data entry for the household questionnaire was performed in a decentralized fashion in parallel with the enumeration, so as to allow for 'real-time' checking of the data collected. This allowed a further tier of quality control checks on the data. Where errors in the data were spotted during data entry, it was possible to instruct enumerators and supervisors to correct the information, if necessary, revisiting the household, when the teams were still in the field. A further round of checks was performed by the core team in Tirana and Bank staff in Washington as the data were gathered from the field and the entire dataset started building up. All but one of the 16 teams in the districts had one DEO, the Fier team had two, and there were four DEO's for Tirana. Each DEO worked with a laptop computer, and was given office space in the regional Statistics Offices, or in INSTAT headquarters for the Tirana teams. The DEO's received Part 1 of the household questionnaire from the supervisor once the supervisor had checked the enumerator's work, within two

This dataset provides values for LIVING WAGE INDIVIDUAL reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

Abstract

The VHLSS 2010 was conducted nationwide with a sample size of 69,360 households in 3,133 communes/wards which were representative at national, regional, urban, rural and provincial levels. The survey collected information during four periods, each period in one quarter from the second quarter to the forth quarter in 2010 and one period in the first quarter of 2011 through face-to-face interviews conducted by interviewers with household heads and key commune officials in communes containing sample enumeration areas.

The survey collected information to be a base for assessment of living standard, poverty and the gap between the rich and the poor serving for policy making, planning and national targeted programs of the party and the State in order to continuously improve the living standard of citizen across the country, in all regions and localities.

Geographic coverage

National coverage. The survey is respresentative at national, urban, rural and provincial levels.

Analysis unit

• Household
• Individual
• Consumption expenditure item/ product

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

The survey questionnaire contains 11 sections: Section 1. Some basic demographic characteristics related to living standards Section 2. Education Section 3. Labour - Employment Section 4. Health and health care Section 5. Income Section 6. Consumption expenditure Section 7. Durable goods Section 8. Housing, electricity, water, sanitation facilities and use of Internet Section 9. Participation in poverty reduction programs Section 10. Business production activities Section 11. Commune general characteristics

LivWell is a global longitudinal database which provides a range of key indicators related to women’s socioeconomic status, health and well-being, access to basic services, and demographic outcomes. Data are available at the sub-national level for 52 countries and 447 regions. A total of 134 indicators are based on 199 Demographic and Health Surveys for the period 1990-2019, supplemented by extensive information on socioeconomic and climatic conditions in the respective regions for a total of 190 indicators. The resulting data offer various opportunities for policy-relevant research on gender inequality, inclusive development, and demographic trends at the sub-national level.

For a full description, please refer to the article describing the database here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-022-01824-2

The companion repository livwelldata allows to easily use the database in R. The R package can be downloaded following the instructions on the following git repository: https://gitlab.pik-potsdam.de/belmin/livwelldata. The version of the database in the package is the same as in this repository.

Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita is a crucial economic indicator that represents the average economic output per person in a given country or region. It is calculated by dividing the total GDP by the population size. This metric is often used to compare the economic performance of different countries and assess the relative prosperity of their citizens. Two commonly used versions of this indicator are GDP per capita at current prices and GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP). GDP per capita at current prices reflects the total economic output of a country divided by its population, using the market prices of goods and services at the time of measurement. This metric provides a snapshot of the economic activity within a country without adjusting for inflation or differences in the cost of living across regions. Global GDP per capita at current prices (PPP) provides a measure of the average economic output per person, adjusted for the differences in the cost of living between countries. This adjustment allows for a more accurate comparison of living standards and economic productivity across different nations.

In 2023, Hungary reached a moderate quality of life index, scoring 132.13 points. From all the aspects of living taken into consideration, the low purchasing power and the high property price-to-income ratio were the least favorable.

Digital Quality of Life

Besides the Quality of Life Index, the Digital Quality of Life Index also plays an important role: measuring the country’s level and quality of digitalization. Levels of e-security, e-infrastructure, e-government, internet quality, and internet affordability are compared. The country’s e-security index totaled the highest with 0.84 points out of one, while e-infrastructure followed closely with 0.82 points. By contrast, Hungarian internet affordability reached only 0.1 index points out of one.

Happiness as an indicator

Happiness is a factor that is influenced by the quality of life. GDP, social support, life expectancy, and freedom are among the factors that influence one’s perceived happiness. In 2022, many countries that score highest on the list of happiest countries worldwide are Nordic countries such as Finland (7.8) and Denmark (7.59) but others, like Israel (7.47) and the Netherlands (7.4) are also high on the list. Out of CEE countries, Czechia scores the highest with 6.85 out of 10 points.

Abstract

In the implementation of the Party and State policy “Doi moi”, the General Statistical Office (GSO) has conducted many household living standards survey to collect information on the living standards of all social societies to serve policy-making and socio-economic development planning.

From 2002 to 2010, VHLSS are to be conducted (in every two- year) to monitor systematically the living standard of Vietnam's societies and at the same time, to exercise the monitoring and assessment of the implementation of the Comprehensive Poverty Alleviation and Growth Strategy defined in Country Strategy Paper approved by the Government Prime Minister. In addition, these surveys also serve the evaluation of realization of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Socio-economic Development Goals set out by Vietnamese Government.

The 2002 VHLSS included all the keynote contents reflecting the living standards of the population and the basic socio-economic condition of communes/wards that might affect the living standards of the local people. As regards households, it collected data in relation to demographic characteristics of the household members, the education background, professional/ technical level of each member, income, expenditures, use of medical facilities of all kinds, employment, housing and amenity as possession, personal effects, utilities (power and water supply), sanitation and participation in the poverty alleviation programme.

As regards communes/wards, it collected a wide rage of information related to demography, nationality, infrastructure, farming, production promotion conditions, non-farming activity and law and order.

Household questionnaires and communes/wards questionnaires of the 2002 VHLSS were designed more scientifically to ensure feasibility. They had been, in fact, piloted in Bac Ninh, Binh Dinh and Dong Nai provinces prior to the actual survey.

Survey sample were selected, based on the Population and Housing Census 1999. The sample size included 75.000 households representative of the whole country, urban and rural area and 61 provinces. Survey samples were sub-divided into 4 minor samples for the quarterly surveys in 2002 for more thorough data collection in anticipation of the harvests that might somehow get in the way. To provide information on assessment of the living standards in 2001-2002, GSO developed and released the detailed results of the 2002 VHLSS, including relevant statistics and initial analysis. Expenditure related data were synthesized from samples of 30.000 households; others, from samples of 45.000 households.

To bring out the changes in the living standards, the 2002 VHLSS results were compared with the results obtained from other living standards surveys, e.g. the 1992-1993 living standards survey (1993 VLSS), the 1993 rich-poor status survey (1993 RPSS), the 1997-1998 living standards surveys (1998 VLSS), the Multipurpose household surveys throughout 1994 to 1997 and 1999 (MHPS)

The data on demography, labor, and employment ect… were collected from the 2002 VHLSS, not replace all the data already released from the surveys conducted in this area, but to shed more light on and make more on insightful analyses of the factors affecting the living standards.

Geographic coverage

National

Analysis unit

• Household
• Individual
• Community
• Consumption expenditure item/product

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

Vietnam household living standard survey 2002 was selected, based on the Population and Housing Census 1999. The sample size included 75.000 households representative of the whole country, urban and rural area and 61 provinces. Survey samples were sub-divided into 4 minor samples for the quarterly surveys in 2002 for more thorough data collection in anticipation of the harvests that might somehow get in the way.

Survey sample were designed by 2 samples: one big sample (45,000 households) which mostly concentrated on income of households to assess living standard for national, regional and provincial levels ; one smaller sample (30,000 households) with both information about income and expenditure to evaluate intensive living standard at central and provincial levels. Following are detail contents :

• Implementing survey in 2002 with income and expenditure questionnaire of 30,000 household sample (Income and expenditure survey). This sample was divided into 4 smaller ones, with 7,500 households of each which conducted in first month of four quarters in 2002 respectively. The 30,000 household sample showed estimations at national and regional levels for 2001-2002.

• In the first six months of 2002, survey was implemented on all sections, except for expenditure section (in Income and expenditure survey) for 45,000 household sample (Income survey). This sample was divided into 2 small samples with 22,500 households of each and conducted in quarter I, II/2002 respectively. Survey of 45,000 household sample combined with 15,000 households of Income and expenditure survey (30,000 household sample) which conducted in the first month in quarter I, II/2002 to establish one 60,000 household sample that showed estimations for national, regional and provincial levels for 2001.

The detail is shown as following:

Collecting data perriod Income and expenditure survey Income survey Total Total 30,000 45,000 75,000

Divided into : QI/2002 7,500 22,500 30,000 QII/2002 7,500 22,500 30,000 QIII/2002 7,500 7,500 QIV/2002 7,500 7,500

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

VLSS 2002 used 3 questionnaires: - Short household questionnaire (excluded most of consumption expenditure information) - Long household questionnaire (including detail consumption expenditure information) - Commune questionnaire

The household questionnaire contains 9 sections each of which covered a separate aspects of household activity. Here are sections: 1. Household Roster 2. Education 3. Employment 4. Health 5. Income and Household Production 6. Expenditure (collected only for long questionnaire) 7. Durable Good and Asset 8. Housing 9. Participation in Poverty Reduction Programs

The commune questionnaire includes 9 sections and was administered by the team leader and completed with the help of village chiefs, teachers, government officials and health care workers. The questionnaire was administered in both rural and urban areas but some section was only collected in rural area such as non-farm employment opportunities and infrastructure and transportation. Here are commune questionnaire sections: 0. Survey Information 1. Main Characteristics of The Commune/ Ward 2. General Economic Conditions and Aid Programs 3. Non-Farm Employment Opportunities 4. Agriculture 5. Physical Infrastructure and Transportation 6. Education 7. Health 8. Public Disorder and Other Social Affairs

Abstract

The first Vietnam Living Standards Survey (VLSS) was conducted in 1992-93 by the State Planning Committee (SPC) (now Ministry of Planning and Investment) along with the General Statistical Office (GSO). The second VLSS was conducted by the GSO in 1997-98. Both VLSS surveys were funded by UNDP and Swedish International Development Authority (SIDA). The survey was part of the Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) household surveys conducted in a number of developing countries with technical assistance from the World Bank.

The second VLSS was designed to provide an up-to-date source of data on households to be used in policy design, monitoring of living standards and evaluation of policies and programs. The timing of the second VLSS approximately five years after the first allows analysis of medium term trends in living standards as a large part of the questionnaire is the same in both surveys.

In addition to the purpose of obtaining a comprehensive and comparable data set to the 1992-93 VLSS for policy analysis, the survey also served as a medium for training and improving survey methods and analysis within the General Statistical Office of Vietnam (GSO), the agency in charge of designing and implementing the second round of the VLSS as well as other government agencies involved in social statistics.

Geographic coverage

National

Analysis unit

• Households
• Individuals
• Community
• Schools
• Health Centers

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

The survey sample was selected to be representative for the whole country, taking into account available funding, geographical conditions, organizational capacity and staff competence. The sample size was set at 6000 households selected from provinces and cities throughout the country, but excluding islands due to logistical difficulties in traveling and conducting the survey in those locations.

The sample for the 1997-1998 VLSS was primarily selected from the households selected in the original 150 communes/wards of the 1992-1993 VLSS. The sample was increased by 1200 households with these additional households obtained from the sample of the Multi-purpose Household survey (MPHS) which was based on a similar sampling methodology. Replacement households were selected randomly from within the clusters of the survey and used where necessary.

The selection of the original sample of 4800 households from VLSS 1992-1993 followed a method of stratified random cluster sampling. The basic sample frame was obtained from the 1989 Population Census. The sampling procedures took into account that communes or wards are the basic local level administrative unit, and each commune/ward has a number of villages or urban residential blocks. The number of households selected in a given cluster was determined primarily based on the requirements for organization of interview teams and time needed for each household interview on location.

Based on the sampling frame including two lists, list of communes and list of wards (or equivalent administrative units) throughout the country with the number of households in each commune/ward obtained from the 1989 Population Census, the sample of the 1992-1993 VLSS was selected in three steps, independently for urban and rural areas:

Step 1: Random selection of 120 communes and 30 wards throughout the country based on the method of probability proportional to the number of households in those villages or wards. The selection of primary sampling units (communes) was stratified by urban and rural areas based on the results of the 1989 Census that 80% of the population was living in rural areas and 20% in urban areas.

Step 2: Within each selected commune, two villages or urban residential blocks were selected randomly by the method of probability proportional to the number of households as in the first stage of sampling. Thus, 240 villages and 60 residential blocks were selected.

Step 3: Within each selected village or residential block, 20 households were randomly selected by systematic method with equal probability, including 16 official and 4 alternate households. To eliminate the effect of the seasonal differences, the rotation method of sample was adopted: the 6000 surveyed households were divided into 10 sub-samples and each sub-sample was surveyed for one month.

Sampling procedure is explained in details in the document called "Vietnam Living Standards Survey (VLSS), 1997-98", available in this documentation.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

The second round of the VLSS used 5 questionnaires: household, commune, price, school and clinic. - Household Questionnaire: The household questionnaire contains 15 sections each of which covered a separate aspect of household activity.

• Commune/Ward Questionnaire: A completely new commune questionnaire was developed for the 1997-98 VLSS survey with a greatly expanded content. A few questions in the 1992-93 questionnaire were dropped or moved to other questionnaires (see below). The commune questionnaire was administered by the team supervisor and completed with the help of village chiefs, teachers, government officials and health care workers. The questionnaire was administered only in rural and minor urban areas, i.e. communes 37 to 194, corresponding to villages 73 to 388. Some sections of the questionnaire contain village/block level information, while most of the commune questionnaire refers to the commune. The commune questionnaire contains 10 sections.

• Price Questionnaire: Price data were collected in all clusters, both urban and rural by the anthropometrist for 36 food items, 33 non-food items, 6 services, 10 pharmaceutical products, and 7 agricultural inputs. Three separate observations were made and these did not necessarily involve actual purchase. However, it is possible that as the anthropometrist is not a local person, the prices quoted are not the true prices of the locality. This information was utilized in checking unit prices in the consumption modules, and for calculating poverty lines. Price indices utilized for adjusting monetary figures to real values were obtained from the GSO CPI unit. Details on how and where prices were to be collected can be found in the anthropometry manual. The actual locations of price collection were recorded in the questionnaires, but unfortunately not entered in the computer files.

• School Questionnaire: The school questionnaires were implemented by the team supervisor to all schools within the two villages selected within a commune. There are between 1 and 7 school questionnaires filled in per commune.

• Commune Health Station Questionnaire: The commune health station questionnaire was implemented by the team supervisor. The respondent could be the director, doctor or physician’s assistant of the health station.

Response rate

Response rates are shown in details in the document called "Vietnam Living Standards Survey (VLSS), 1997-98 Basic Information", available in this documentation.