Social Indicators & Equity Information System for Latin America and the Caribbean Jose Antonio Mejia MECOVI Program Coordinator Inter-American Development Bank April 24, 2006 ________________________________________

Description. Justification. Sources and Methodology. Audience. Demostration. Next steps.

Description eQxIS: Is an information System featuring an easily accessible interface that offers: Graphics and tabulations of social indicators. Disaggregations by income groups, geographical (urban /rural) areas and ethnic background. Information available for 22 countries, beginning in 1990. With more than 80 household surveys processed. Meta data and transparent methodology.

Justification Usefulness of averages for social indicators is limited. Disaggregated indicators allow to assess: 1) Equity: The gap between poor and non poor, among quintiles. 2) Pro-poor social development: If achievements or setbacks harmed or benefited the population equally. 3) Compare social development among countries. In which countries the poorest have advanced faster than others. 4) Assess Sector Priorities: which sectors in society feature wider access gaps for the poor.

Sources and Methodology Estimations are based on the Household Surveys Data Bank from the MECOVI Program (more than 300 surveys for 22 countries). The MECOVI program (since 1996, IADB-WB- ECLAC) has significantly contributed to increase the availability and quality of Household Surveys in Latin America. Millennium Development Goals Social-Economic Indicators and others. Using definitions of MDGs indicators provided by the United Nations.

Sources and Methodology MECOVI Household Survey Data Base UN Indicators for monitoring MDGs + Web page Display * Calculation of indicators based on UN definitions. Disaggregating by : - Income quintiles - Gender - Geographic Area - Ethnic background * Calculation of stat. significance figures *Codification Stata Submission of coded database to Access Consistency of Data Display data features: standard error less than 20% of average value more than 30 sample observations ASP Programs and Access inquiries

Audience eQxIS is an information system useful to policy makers, IDB’s staff, donors, researchers and civil society Offers social indicators monitoring system with an equity approach and with international comparisons- LAC. Offers users easy access to social indicators for 22 countries for up to four points in time. Easy to interpret and to export to working documents (Research tool). Support instrument to donors. Input to view the state of things beyond averages. WE HAVE COMMON INTERESTS, LET’S PULL IN THE SAME DIRECTION.

www.iadb.org/xindicators Demostration WE HAVE COMMON INTERESTS, LET’S PULL IN THE SAME DIRECTION.

Next steps Expansion: Indicators and data sources -Additional Indicators. e.g. Health indicators from DHS. -Sub-national Disaggregations. Using Census Data to construct Poverty Maps. Continue validation process with countries. Transfer technology to countries.

Our site: www.iadb.org/xindicators