UNFPA presents a documentary on the first Socio-demographic and Economic Survey in Afghanistan

Good data is essential for consensus building and making good decisions to both respond to problems and opportunities. Censuses, surveys and vital statistics provide critical data about people and their needs. Knowing how many people live in a given area, who they are and where they live and work, is essential to guide plans to meet people's needs and improve their lives. Population dynamics - including changing population size, structure and distribution, involving fertility, mortality and migration, among others - influence every aspect of social and economic development. Generating, analyzing and disseminating population data is critical for good governance and helps establish sound and successful development policies and programmes.

The documentary shows the first ever experience of Socio-demographic and Economic Survey (SDES) in Bamiyan province and gives voices to the survey protagonists, the local community, and to the Central Statistics Organization which implemented the survey.

The success of the Bamiyan experience confirms the advantages of a provincial large-scale survey approach in Afghanistan. This type of approach can guarantee, for example, a better preventive and response capacity to ensure security conditions are acceptable for the survey to be conducted and more efficiency in management and logistics processes.

Building Afghanistan's capacities for data collection and data analysis continue to be among UNFPA priorities. Thanks to the financial support of the Government of Japan the SDES is rolled out in Ghor and Daikundi.

UNFPA supports research and data collection, focuses on the strategic use of data for improved decision-making, better reproductive health and progress towards the MDGs. In the past ten years UNFPA Afghanistan, together with other partners, has been providing assistance to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan through institutional capacity building of the Central Statistics Organization and other key government institutions for data collection, processing, analysis, dissemination of socio-economic and demographic information, policy formulation and development planning.