CEMAC and UEMOA, with the support of the World Bank, are continuing the harmonization of their statistical systems to improve the quality of socio-economic data in West and Central Africa. A workshop, held from January 27 to 31, 2025 in Douala, aims to validate the tools of the price component of the Harmonized Survey on Household Living Conditions (EHCVM), essential for the formulation of effective public policies.
Douala is hosting a crucial workshop this week bringing together 24 experts from CEMAC and UEMOA member states, as well as representatives from Guinea, Cape Verde and Mauritania. The objective: to finalize the methodology for the price component of the 2025-2026 edition of the EHCVM, which aims to produce accurate indicators on household living conditions. This project is part of the Program for the Harmonization and Improvement of Statistics in West and Central Africa (PHASAOC), supported by the World Bank to the tune of more than $1 billion (approximately 550 million FCFA). This program follows the Program for the Harmonization of Household Living Conditions Surveys (PHECVM), launched in 2016 with the eight UEMOA countries, and which has gradually expanded to 18 African countries.
Statistics for better governance
The challenge is significant: aligning national statistical systems with international standards in order to ensure decision-making based on reliable data. “The importance of having statistical tools that are harmonized and compliant with international standards is a corollary of any development project,” stressed Baltasar Engonga Edjo’o, President of the CEMAC Commission. The Douala workshop thus allows experts to examine and validate the technical tools relating to the price component, in particular the coverage of products and geographical areas, the sampling methodology and the survey questionnaire. These statistics will be essential for assessing the impact of public policies on reducing poverty and inequalities.
A major step forward for UEMOA
WAEMU has already taken a decisive step by adopting, as of January 1, 2025, a new methodology for its Harmonized Consumer Price Index (HCPI), in line with international advances. This reform, approved in December 2024 by the WAEMU Council of Ministers, illustrates the desire of member states to improve the quality of economic and social data. Thanks to this harmonization, economic and social policies can be better adapted to the realities of populations. Prosper Romuald Backiny Yetna, economist in charge of statistics at the World Bank, recalls that “this survey mainly aims to produce indicators on monetary and non-monetary poverty, such as education, employment, access to water and sanitation, food security and housing.”
Strengthened strategic cooperation
The Douala workshop is part of a broader process of rapprochement between CEMAC and UEMOA in the production and dissemination of statistics. Mahamadou Gado, Commissioner of the Department of Economic Policies and Domestic Taxation of UEMOA, emphasizes the importance of this dynamic: “This joint activity reflects the strength of the strategic cooperation between our two sister commissions.”
At the end of this workshop, the methodology for the price component will be finalized and the regional version of the questionnaire validated. The National Institutes of Statistics (NSIs) will be ready to launch the pilot surveys as early as October 2025, thus providing Member States with up-to-date data to better guide their economic and social policies. The harmonization of statistics between CEMAC and UEMOA constitutes an important step towards more effective governance and a better understanding of economic and social dynamics in Africa.
