[www.inewsguyana.com] – Government took an important first step today in crafting effective national and local responses to crime, domestic abuse and incidences of victimization, unemployment and living conditions.
Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan signed three non-reimbursable technical cooperation agreements valuing US$1.3million ($268, 450,000) with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on Wednesday, December 23, 2015 for the design and implementation of three surveys that will provide critical data for effective planning and policy making.
According to a press release from the Ministry of Finance, the Crime and Victimization Survey, Labour Force Survey and Household Survey on Living Conditions will enable state agencies to improve their capacity to gather and analyze available social and economic data as well as monitor and evaluate the impact of government policies and programs.
“These are the first surveys of their kind in more than a decade. Minister Jordan during the signing said he was heartened by the agreements as very early in the life of the Government, a premium was placed on statistical data so that government policies and plans can be undertaken in a structured and more informed manner which in turn will ensure that resources are optimally expended so that they bring the greatest benefits to the country,” the release noted.
The grants will cover both expenses related to training the staff of the Bureau of Statistics and the actual execution of the surveys.
Under the household survey of living conditions, information will be gathered on income, health, employment, educational attainment and housing conditions. This data will allow for the calculation of poverty rates and income inequality.
Information on unemployment and employment participation will be gathered under the labour force survey which will be conducted on a quarterly basis.
The crime and victimization survey will examine perceptions on crime, violence, and domestic abuse as well as the underlying issues of pervasiveness, under-reporting, socioeconomic profiles, and geographic patterns.
“Sophie Makonnen, IDB Country Representative said that the signing is the first of the 2016 support Guyana will receive from the Bank which is a result of a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Finance and the IDB.”
According to the release, she pointed out that data on living conditions and unemployment are from 2006 and 2007 respectively. The surveys will address gaps and weaknesses that emerged during the past decade and will be executed within the next four years.
In order to stop domestic violence against women first the need to investigate the Police officers that are raping all of the female prisoners.