The year 2009 was very productive for the Southern Sudan Centre for Census Statistics and Evaluation (SSCCSE).
The Centre’s major achievement was the completion of the processing and dissemination of the 5th Sudan Population and Housing Census (SPHC) results. Apart from the fact that the census is a benchmark in the interim period running up to the referendum in January 2011, its completion has fed into the coming elections and of course, is providing vital information for policy makers and planners at all levels of Government.
For the first time also, the Centre produced a Statistical Yearbook as part of its efforts to support data user needs all over Southern Sudan and beyond. The 2009 Statistical Yearbook presented information from a variety of sources including primary data collected by SSCCSE and administrative records from other agencies of Government.
The opportunity to work with other producers of statistics in the Southern Sudan during data collection for the Yearbook and during the dissemination workshop provided the needed interaction among stakeholders that should ease collection, compilation and dissemination of statistical information in future.
Thirdly, the Centre undertook the National Baseline Household Survey (NBHS) whose primary purpose was to collect data for estimating poverty. The same data will be used for determining consumer price index (CPI) weights and to make a start in the development of national accounts in general. The data will also provide the first baseline estimates on a range of statistics from credit, economic shocks, health and nutrition, education, housing and access to services, especially by investigating their links to poverty.
The Centre registered several other achievements as well. It undertook a post enumeration field mapping exercise for the purpose of updating cartographic information and the entire census frame. It set-up, and hosts the Crisis Recovery and Mapping Analysis (CRMA)/GIS units in addition to the SIFSIA/Food Security Technical Secretariat units all of which have become integral parts of the Southern Sudan statistical system. It also undertook and completed several other field activities including the Malaria Indicator Survey and the Second and Third rounds of the Household Budget Surveys.
During 2009, the Centre also developed deeper relationships with the various development partners who have supported SSCCSE activities since its inception. Prominent among these partners are USAID/ Deloitte, UNFPA, UNDP, Statistics Norway, UNICEF, FAO, DFID and the African Development Bank.
This Annual Report provides a summary of the activities of the Centre in 2009, the challenges faced, and the achievements. Many of the activities cut across departments, such as those related to the Census, the Statistical Yearbook or various surveys. As such it is intended as a comprehensive overview of the work accomplished by SSCCSE in 2009 and includes, in particular, the activities of each of the Centre’s constituent departments.