Household Budget Survey 2001
Azerbaijan, 2001
Identification
AZE_2001_HBS_v01_M
Household Budget Survey 2001
| Name | Country code |
|---|---|
| Azerbaijan | AZE |
Income/Expenditure/Household Survey [hh/ies]
A sample survey of household expenses and income in the Republic of Azerbaijan is aimed to generate economic and statistical data on living standards in the country. The survey data plays a major role in investigating the pattern of the impact of social changes on the living standards. The data is used to develop policies designated to provide social protection for different population groups in a transition economy.
The survey papers are widely used for various economic and statistical estimations: gross domestic product calculation and distribution; consumer price index and real expense calculations; agricultural production and utilization balance sheet; national accounts, where household indicators play an important role, etc.
The Household Budget Survey conducted by the State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan is the main source of information for analysis of living standards of separate population groups, income differentiation and poverty levels in the country. The survey was introduced in 2001 and has been carried out annually since then.
The Azerbaijan HBS is based on a random probability sample, which was designed to give nationally representative results and allow comparison between main regions of the country and different categories of the population. Approximately 8,700 households are interviewed annually. The annual sample is divided into about 2,200 households per quarter, with a full rotation of households occurring each quarter.
The survey collects information on household income and expenditure, housing conditions, ownership of consumer durables, access to agricultural land and demographic characteristics of household members.
Results of HBS 2001 served as the basis for estimates of poverty in Azerbaijan, using a relative poverty line and a new revised absolute poverty line. Using an absolute poverty line of 120,000 AZM (25.8 USD) per capita per month, it was estimated that 49% of the country population was living in poverty. Using a relative poverty line set at 72,000 AZM (15.5 USD) it was estimated that 17% of the population was living in extreme poverty.
Sample survey data [ssd]
- Private households;
A household is defined as a single person or a group of persons with a common budget and residence (house, flat, etc.). The members of the household may not be relatives even if living together and sharing a common household. Persons living in institutional households (elderly houses, hospitals, military barracks etc.) are excluded from the survey.
Since the first half of 90-ties about 800,000 persons migrated within Azerbaijan because of the war in Nagorno-Karabach region. There have been some 250,000 refugees mainly from the other republics of previous USSR, too. This population part is included in the sampling frame according to their actual living place at the time of the population census in 1999.
Version
v01: Edited data, for internal use only.
2001
Scope
The scope of the study includes:
- Household expenditure;
- Household income;
- Housing conditions;
- Land plots;
- Health conditions;
- Education, employment and other demographic characteristics.
Coverage
National
Cities and settlements
Producers and sponsors
| Name |
|---|
| State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan |
| Name |
|---|
| State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan |
Sampling
The sample of Azerbaijan HBS is based on territorial random probability principles. This allows stratifying the population by urban/rural category and by geographical characteristics (8 regions - economic zones). Taking into account that one fourth of the population is concentrated in the capital city Baku this population was included into a separate stratum.
Data from the population census 1999 was used in the survey. Three-stage sampling was implemented to select participating households.
Detailed description of the sampling procedure is available in "Azerbaijan HBS: Methodology" (p.2-6) in external resources.
In 2001 the State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SSC) had to re-allocate existing interviewer staff to new sampling regions. However, existing employment legislation did not allow them to fire existing interviewers, or to re-hire them on more flexible contract basis. This led to compromises in the original sample implementation, with some interviewers having to work nearer to the place of residence. The compromises have led to some distortions in the final sample, with perhaps the most damaging being the under-representation of IDPs (internally displaced persons) in the 2001 sample. Throughout the year, the SSC has worked to re-allocate and re-employ interviewers in accordance with the new sample, and from 2002 there were no compromises.
Interviewers under the old (before 2001) survey were asked to interview the same households indefinitely. In 2001, they were asked to contract new households each quarter. Given that households were paid only a nominal sum for their participation, interviewers were required to develop and use communication skills in gaining the trust of the households.
The first 2001 survey results showed that too much emphasis and control was being made on overall response rate, but response rates to individual questions were very low. Particularly damaging was the fact that interviewers were allowed to submit questionnaires with incomplete expenditure diaries, since household per capita expenditure was the main indicator used to evaluate welfare levels.
Survey instrument
The following survey instruments are used in Azerbaijan HBS:
-
Household Composition Checklist (to be filled for each household at the outset of the survey).
If a household has agreed to participate in the survey, an interviewer must complete a household composition checklist. -
Main Interview Questionnaire (also to be filled at the outset of the survey).
It is completed during an interview with the head of the household at the outset of the survey. The questionnaire contains four chapters:
- Housing conditions;
- House-side plot;
- Education and employment of household members;
- Health conditions.
- Daily Expenditure Diary (to be filled by the household during two weeks).
The interviewer must explain to the household how to properly record expenses, namely:
- Expenses are recorded on the date they are incurred.
- Every expense is recorded in a separate line.
- Records must be as accurate and detailed as possible.
-
Quarterly Expenditure Register (to be used throughout the entire quarter and as a supplement for the quarterly expenditure and income interview).
The interviewer asks the surveyed households about their regular expenses and income on a quarterly basis. He/she poses questions about main (large) buys and regular expenses over the quarter. Since the family would have problems recollecting all expenses incurred over this period it is assumed that during the quarter the household will record expenses exceeding a certain amount in this document. -
Expenditure and Income Questionnaire (to be filled quarterly in the course of the interview with the household members).
The expenditure and income questionnaire includes the following chapters:
- Clothing and shoe expenditure;
- Household commodity expenditure;
- Furniture, service and other large expenditure;
- Housing and utility expenditure;
- House-side land plot;
- Health care expenditure;
- Other expenses;
- Individual questionnaire;
- Control of completing the individual questionnaire;
- Household's income.
While the questionnaires were piloted in the last quarter of 2000, there was not sufficient time to analyze the results of the pilot before launching the survey in January 2001. It was considered vital to begin data collection in January, in order to start the pattern of obtaining calendar year survey results. However, as the first results were entered and analyzed, it became clear that some of the questions were being interpreted in different ways by different interviewers. This was corrected through repeated training sessions and a revision of the questionnaires. The updated questionnaires were introduced in January 2002.
Data collection
| Start | End | Cycle |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 2001 | Quarterly |
| Name |
|---|
| State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan |
During 2001 in those local areas (raions) where the survey had not previously been carried out, there was no local State Statistical Committee staff directly responsible for supervision of the fieldwork. Although local heads of offices were informed, there was not initially enough clarity about the tasks of local supervisors. This has gradually improved, but the quality of data from the first three quarters shows regional differences in the quality of fieldwork.
Data Access
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:
State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan Household Budget Survey (HBS) 2001, Ref. AZE_2001_HBS_v01_M. Dataset downloaded from [URL] on [date].
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 | |
|---|---|
| State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan | sc@azstat.org |
Metadata production
DDI_AZE_2001_HBS_v01_M
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Julia Dukhno | World Bank | Documentation of the study |
| Development Data Group | World Bank | Revision of the study documentation |
2012-02-21
Metadata version
v02 (September 2012)
Following changes were made in v02, compared to v01 produced in February 2012:
- Included "Abstract", "Scope", "Sampling Procedure", "Deviations from Sample Design", "Response Rates" and "Supervision" information;
- Edited "Units of Analysis", "Citation Requirements" and "Disclaimer” information;
- Included additional external resources.