NAKURU,Kenya June 7 – The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) has commissioned a 3-month survey tasked with established the full scale effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on households and small scale businesses in the country.
KNBS had initially planned on kicking-off the exercise last year but postponed it as the pandemic raged on.
Initially studies however revealed depreciation of revenues, loss of income and massive job losses as the major effects brought about by the pandemic.
FinAccess Survey will conduct the exercise.
Thousands of research assistants and supervisors are currently undertaking a training in Naivasha,Nakuru County.
Other areas that will form part of the survey includes; the effects of betting on families, cases of fraud and money laundering in the country.
KNBS Director-General McDonald Obudho told Shahidi News that the data will greatly assist the government institute policies that will help Kenyans during this period.
“We did not have data on effects of the pandemic at the household level. This is a very crucial exercise in which it will assist not only the national government but also financial institutions in making informed decisions. ” said the DG, Obudho.
The previous survey did not expressly feature the effects at the household level, something the bureau seeks to address as well as increased cases on money laundering and fraud.
“This survey will help establish where there are limitations and how the government and financial institutions can fill in the gaps. “The research assistants will head to the field for three months and will look into financial transactions in the grassroots and effects of Covid-19 among others,” he said.
With the pandemic affecting almost all facets of the economy and lives of Kenyans, the survey seeks to target financial access and credit for small scale traders and households during the height of the pandemic.
This the bureau believes will help the government formulate meaningful interventions rot cushion Kenyans,
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