Officially launched yesterday at the Paradise Suites Hotel, the Economic Census (EC) will collect information about businesses and industries and the Business Establishment Survey (BES) gather detailed facts about the businesses for improved national economic planning and strategic development drive.
The objectives of the economic census , according to GBoS deputy Statistician General Alieu Saho include the following: “They are to collect and provide statistics on formal economic activities for the rebasing of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimates from 2013 to 2023; to provide a basis for the development of the business register which will serve as sampling frame for further economic surveys; to update the taxpayers’ database and industrial coding of economic activities following the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC Rev 4)which will facilitate the use of tax data classified by industry for the compilation of quarterly GDP; to provide new weights for the producer price index (PPI) for manufacturing industry, and to provide other indicators of businesses (gross output, number of employees, type of businesses and ownership,etc) for specific economic analysis for different economic activities.”
The conduct of the exercise is very timely, Mr Saho said, as they have started producing quarterly GDP and are preparing to migrate to the new SNA (SNA 2025). “This is therefore a great opportunity for the country to change its data landscape. Data that will help policy and decision making, development of projects and programmes and, as well, tracking progress towards the achievement of the set targets for the NDP, AU Agenda 2063 and SDGs.”
The GBoS deputy SG, who was addressing a training/seminar for the recruited enumerators conducted by the Technical Working Group of the EC and BES, appreciated the organisers including the World Bank, the IMF and the Gambia Government for providing the funds and technical assistance key in obtaining the needed data.
Regarding the intrinsic objectives of the Business Establishment Survey, the statistician said these are “to rebase the GDP base year from 2013 to 2023, compile value added by industry at product level through Supply Use Table (SUT) framework, improve estimates and compilation methodology, and provide new weights for the Producer Price Index (PPI) for the manufacturing industry.
While the EC is expected to be conducted every 5 years to come up with a new GDP base year, Saho said limited resources have constrained that.
Since the first GDP base year for The Gambia in 1974, economic data for the country has taken the long spans of being renewed in 2004, 2013 on to 2023, and now 2024 when another GDP base year is to be determined.
In a similar vein, Finance and Economic Affairs PS Baboucar Jobe underscored the importance of the economic census for the plethora of benefits it has for the national economy and the business community.
“Government pays more attention to accurate information from the Economic Census for development purposes,” he said, and also commended development partners for aiding the exercise.
The Finance ministry would continue to support the fruitful realisation of the exercise, he further assured.
