The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in collaboration with the World Bank Living Standards Measurement Study Team designs and implements the General Household Survey (GHS) – Panel.
GHS-Panel survey is a nationally representative survey that contains detailed information on household socioeconomic and income-generating activities.
The GHS-Panel survey is being administered every 2 – 3 years on a sub-sample of the 5,000 GHS households first surveyed in 2010. The GHS-Panel data is collected in two visits designed to coincide with major periods of the main agricultural season (post-planting and post-harvest). Three rounds of the survey have been implemented thus far – 2010/11, 2012/13, 2015/2016.
This data launch is for the 2015/16 round of the survey. The complete set of data and survey documentation will be launched at the workshop in Abuja on December 13, 2016. The workshop includes representatives from various government and non-governmental agencies in Nigeria. The data and documentation will “go live” (be online) the same day.
Some highlights of the survey results are
Education: School enrolment among children aged 5-14 increased from 78.3% in 2013 to 81.2% in 2016.
Access to electricity: 59.3% of households have electricity in their dwelling. On average, electricity is available for 35.8 hours per week with an annual cost of around 27,000 Naira.
Access to mobile phone and internet: on average 88.7% of persons 10 years and older have access to a mobile phone while 17.4% have access to the internet.
Shocks: main shocks include increase in the price of food items (12.4% of households experience the shock), followed by death or disability of a household member (5.7%) and increasing price for inputs (3.6%)
Nonfarm enterprise: Over 67% of Nigerian households own and operate a nonfarm enterprise. The most common activities for these enterprises is retail trade (59%), other personal services (10.2%), and land transport (9.4%).
Agriculture: the most commonly grown crops are maize (48.3% of crop producing households), cassava (41.6%), and sorghum (39%). When producing maize, 28.6% of households used purchased seeds, 64.9% used fertilizer, 45.1 % used herbicide, and 28.4% used insecticide.
- The GHS-Panel represents a uniquely detailed source of information on the living standards and wellbeing of Nigerian households. Since the survey follows the same households over time and collects a rich set of information, there is great potential for analysis and policy recommendations across a wide array of development sectors. The data from all three waves is made freely available in order to spur government officials, independent researchers, and donors to monitor living standards and formulate policies aimed at improving the lives of ordinary Nigerians.
