Integrated Living Conditions Survey 2018
Armenia, 2018
Get MicrodataIdentification
| Name | Country code |
|---|---|
| Armenia | ARM |
Since 1996, when the present Integrated Living Conditions Survey was first implemented in Armenia, the National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia (NSS) with the assistance of the World Bank, USAID and other donor organizations, has been putting effort to continuously improve the quality of data collected through household surveys, as well as to advance its own expertise in arriving at a more accurate assessment of poverty. These efforts have proven to be successful as the data collected through household surveys and the estimates of poverty rate based on such data appeared to be an important input in defining and monitoring the poverty reduction strategy, which is the responsibility of the Government.
In 2004, the NSS undertook significant measures to improve the Integrated Living Conditions Survey (ILCS) and to update the poverty assessment methodology, which was used until 2008. With the technical assistance provided by the World Bank and due to numerous consultancies and practical works: (1) the survey sample frame was updated using the 2001 Population Census database, (2) the sample size was expanded to ensure representativeness of data by regions, (3) the ILCS questionnaire was revised to reflect economic and social changes since 1998/99 up to 2003, as well as a comprehensive section on employment was added into the questionnaire, (4) the surveying personnel underwent a more profound training.
With the co-funding provided within the period of 2007-2011 by the Millennium Challenge Account - Armenia (MCA-Armenia), a state non-commercial organization, the sample size of the ILCS has been expanded to include 7,872 households annually as compared to the relevant indicator at 5,184 in 2006 (funded from the state budget only). Nonetheless, due to the termination of activities of MCA-Armenia in 2012, the sample size was reduced back to 5,184 households. This is the sample size in the 2018 survey.
ILCS is conducted during the year with monthly rotation of households and settlements. The survey results serve primarily to assess the level of consumption-based poverty in Armenia.
country, as well as to provide valuable information on households' living conditions by means of other indicators.
- Individuals.
Version
Scope
The scope of the Integrated Living Conditions Survey includes:
- Housing Conditions;
- Education;
- Agriculture;
- Health and Healthcare;
- Social Assistance;
- Current Expenditures;
- Consumption;
- Income.
Coverage
Urban and rural communities
The survey covers: The usual residents present and the usual residents temporarily absent
Definition of usual resident: People who permanently reside in the given area as well as those who are temporarily absent (up to 1 year). The minimum duration of stay is at least one day in the month. Otherwise, the household member is considered temporarily absent.
Definition of household and household members: People who usually live together, share the same housekeeping and have the same budget.
Usual household members who are temporarily absent are enumerated in the survey: Yes, including labour related questions
Age coverage: The labour related questions of the survey relate to the population of age groups between 15 and 75 years old
Producers and sponsors
| Name |
|---|
| National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia |
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| World Bank |
Technical Support |
Sampling
Sample design
Sampling frame: Population census
The sampling frame is updated: every year
Procedure used to update the sampling frame: No update till new Census
Lowest level of geographic disaggregation for which reliable estimates of the unemployment rate can be produced and their frequency: Settlement (annual)
The sample is stratified: Yes
Variables used for stratification: geographic region, urbanisation, population size of locality
Number of sampling stages: 2
Ultimate sampling units: households
Number of ultimate sampling units per sample area: 8
Sample size: 656 ultimate sampling units per month
Sample fraction: 1% of the total population
Comments: Before the beginning of the observation year the sample frame is constructed; every month the enumeration areas and households are rotated. Every interviewer visits 8 households per month.
Survey instrument
The Questionnaire is filled in by the interviewer in the course of at 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 2018 survey questionnaire had the following sections: (A) List of Household Members, (B) Migration, (C) Housing Conditions, (D) Employment, (E) Education, (F) Agriculture, (G) Food Production, (H) Monetary and Commodity Flows between Households, (I) Health (General) and Healthcare, (J) Debts, (K) Subjective Estimation of the Living Standard, (L) Provision of Services, (M) Social Assistance, (N) Activities of Private Households as Employers and Undifferentiated Production Activities of Private Households, (O) Monthly Consumption of Energy Carriers in Households, and (P) Global Food Insecurity Experience Scale.
The Diary is completed directly by the household during 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: Section X: (X.1) food purchased during the day, (X.2) food consumed at home during the day, (X.3) Food consumed outside, (X.4) non-food products purchased and services received, (TableX.5) All other non-food products and services received free of charge ; Section Y - (Table Y.1) Diary of Household Incoem and Revenues; and Section Z - (Table Z.1) Salary, (Table Z.2) Food which is usually consumed daily in little quantity, (Table Z.3) List of real estate, durable goods and ritual services, (Table Z.4) Days absent.
The interviewer’s manual provides detailed instructions for completing the questionnaire and the diary.
The Questionnaire, the Diary and the Interviewer's Manual are revised and adjusted, as appropriate, prior to the launch of the survey. Starting from 2012, data are codified under the “Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose” (COICOP) classifier.
Data collection
| Start | End | Cycle |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-01-01 | 2018-12-31 | Monthly |
Average duration of an interview per household member of working age: 25 minutes
The field staff is mainly: recruited specifically for the survey
Duration of training on the survey for newly recruited interviewers: 2 day(s)
Respondents' participation in the survey is compulsory: No
Ultimate sampling units that could not be identified are replaced: Yes
Ultimate sampling units that could not be contacted are replaced: Yes
Ultimate sampling units that refuse to participate are replaced: Yes
Access policy
The use of the datasets must be acknowledged using a citation which would include:
- the identification of the Primary Investigator (including country name)
- the full title of the survey and its acronym (when available), and the year(s) of implementation
- the survey reference number
- the source and date of download (for datasets disseminated online).
Example:
National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia, World Bank. Armenia Integrated Living Conditions Survey (ILCS) 2018, Ref. ARM_2018_ILCS_v01_M. Dataset downloaded from [URL] on [date].
Depositor information
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Poverty - GP | World Bank Group |
Disclaimer and copyrights
The user of the data acknowledges that the original collector of the data, the authorized distributor of the data, and the relevant funding agency bear no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or inferences based upon such uses.
Contacts
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| ECA Team for Statistical Development | World Bank | ecatsd@worldbank.org |
Metadata production
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Development Data Group | World Bank |
Generation of DDI documentation |