83980 Quarterly Update September 30, 2013 Issue 19 Special Interview 8 Governance Meetings an overall positive outlook on the path ahead. Kaushik Basu, Sr. Vice President and Chief Economist, World Bank hosted a luncheon for the TAG members where he commended their efforts and spoke of his anticipation for the 2011 ICP results. Computation Task Force Meeting The Computation Task Force met on Septem- ber 26, 2013 to harmonize their approaches and methods for computing ICP results. The session was fruitful and led to an agreement on a strict timetable and guidelines for pro- cessing the results in time for their publica- tion in December 2013. 59th ISI World 9th Technical Advisory Group Meeting Luncheon, Washington, DC (September 25, 2013) Statistics Congress 10th Regional Coordinators’ Meeting 9th Technical Advisory Group Meeting The 59th the International Statistical Institute The 10th Meeting of the 2011 ICP Regional The 9th Meeting of the 2011 ICP Technical (ISI) World Statistics Congress took place in Coordinators was held from September 23- Advisory Group (TAG) was held from Sep- Hong Kong, China from August 25-30, 2013. 24, 2013 in Washington, DC. The meeting tember 25-27, 2013 in Washington, DC. The The session entitled Measuring the real size discussed issues related to: (i) global and meeting covered issues related to: (i) prelimi- of the world economy: Methodological and regional progress reports; (ii) review of data nary results; (ii) productivity adjustment; (iii) quality improvements of the International quality; (iii) review of metadata quality; and linking the CIS region; (iii) global aggrega- Comparison Program (ICP) was organized by (iv) ICP timetable and publishing final re- tion; (iv) ICP timetable; and (v) recommenda- Michel Mouyelo-Katoula, ICP Global Man- sults. The meeting discussed remaining issues tions. The TAG reviewed preliminary 2011 ager. Papers were presented by Paul McCar- to be resolved and the actions necessary to ICP results computed by the experts. Much thy, Fred Vogel, Oliver Chinganya, Chellam ensure the best quality 2011 ICP results. debate over the details and methodologies Palanyandy, Nada Hamadeh, Majed Skaini resulted in decisions to be implemented and and Kyung Sam Min on topics including: 9th Technical Advisory Group Meeting, Washington, DC (September 25-27, 2013) ICP Quarterly Update — September 30, 2013 — Issue No 19 Page 2 port summary and a user-friendly report ti- the ICP release. 59th ISI cont’d tled, “Africa in the World” is planned for Latin America and the Caribbean improved methods to estimate PPPs; en- April-June 2014. hanced data validation procedures; GDP ex- A high-level regional meeting took place in Asia and the Pacific haustiveness, consistency, and methods of Santiago, Chile from September 9-10, 2013 to estimating GDP expenditures; and improved The preliminary results of the ICP for Asia- discuss preliminary results with member PPP extrapolation approaches. More infor- Pacific were discussed at a regional Expert countries. The results will be shown to Heads mation on this session and the papers may be Group meeting from July 31-August 2, 2013. of NSOs during the meeting of the Statistical found at http://www.isi2013.hk/en/index.php The Regional Advisory Board meeting was Conference of the Americas in November held on August 12, 2013 and was followed by 2013 in Santiago. Final results will be re- a meeting of the Heads of National Imple- leased in December 2013. ECLAC plans to menting Agencies on August 13, 2013 in publish the results before or simultaneous to Manila, Philippines. the release of the global results. Latin Ameri- ca and the Caribbean will have separate press Commonwealth of Independent States releases and publications of their data, which A meeting of the CIS ICP Coordination will contain all of the statistics and methodo- Council on the results of the CIS ICP 2011 logical details, including an analysis of final will be held in October where they will decide results. on the set of results to be published. In No- Pacific Islands vember-December 2013, the CIS-Stat will publish an electronic version and a hard copy A fourth and final data validation workshop of the regional results, accompanied by a was held in Brisbane, Australia in June 2013 press release. In April 2014, the members of and all countries were asked to formally sign 59th ISI, Hong Kong, China (August 25-30) the CIS ICP Coordination Council will deter- off on their data by September 13, 2013. The mine the dissemination policy for 2011 ICP Pacific expects to deliver a final dataset of results, which will contain brief methodologi- prices, importance indicators and (proxy) ICP Toolkit V5.1 cal recommendations and result tables. All expenditure weights, together with updated efforts will be made to disseminate global and metadata questionnaires, to the Global Office Edition 5.1 of the ICP Toolkit was released regional 2011 ICP results via press confer- in October 2013. The final report will likely during the 10th RC meeting and included ences, presentations at regional and national include the results of the current round, les- enhancements and security features such as users’ meetings, and the CIS-Stat website. sons learned, and plans for ensuring that the summing up availability and importance in- Pacific is able to participate more fully in the formation provided in the new Quaranta Ta- Eurostat-OECD future. With the data and metadata nearly bles for each country. Other improvements New data are still being collected and validat- close to final, the region intends to convene a included extended filter functions; reorganiza- ed up to and including November 2013. The round of meetings with key stakeholders to tion of results tables; optimization of aggrega- final data, including revised 2005 expendi- discuss outreach/communication issues and tion and index processing methods; assess- tures, will be submitted by the end of Novem- other issues associated with the publication of ment of the regional Master Lists in the Setup ber 2013 as previously agreed. Provisionally, results. and Diagnostics module for integrity; and Eurostat and OECD will release the 2011 PPP more features to enable optimal utilization of data on December 12, 2013 in the form of a Western Asia the tool. press release and a database release. Consid- The region had a mission to Kuwait to review eration is underway for a special joint data in the beginning of July and in August Regional Activities OECD/Eurostat press release on the day of they had a meeting on 2005 and 2011 national Africa A regional workshop on national accounts data validation occurred in Nairobi, Kenya from July 15-19, 2013 to ensure that countries completed, finalized and validated the data collected in respect to the national accounts specific surveys. The Africa regional coordi- nation team held a retreat to review computa- tion procedures and draft the outline of the ICP regional report. The regional coordinators will present preliminary results to AfDB man- agement in early November 2013 followed by a press release and a presentation of the final results to NSO Director Generals in Decem- ber 2013. Publication of the main report, re- National Accounts workshop, Nairobi, Kenya (July 12 – 19, 2013) ICP Quarterly Update — September 30, 2013 — Issue No 19 Page 3 Regional Activities cont’d Special Interview with Angus Deaton, Dwight D Eisenhower accounts with the expectation of submitting Professor, Princeton University and member of the ICP TAG regional results for the directors of NSOs’ clearance in October or November. Publica- Q3. How do you see the improvements tion of final results and a press release is made to the PPP computation and quality planned for the end of November 2013. over the years? A formal working session with the 2011 ICP Huge, just enormous. The move of the ICP to Global Office was held in Washington, DC the World Bank, and the housing of the Glob- from September 16-20 to produce preliminary al Office at the Bank marked an enormous regional results for Western Asia and prepare improvement in professionalism and in the for the ICP regional workshop in Western quality of the work. In 1993, the last round Asia to be held October 7-10, 2013. before 2005, there were many problems, enough to threaten the viability of the project. Singleton Countries - Georgia But the 2005 round put it back on a profes- A final meeting was held from July 16-19, sional basis, with high quality results, and a 2013 in Tbilisi, Georgia to finalize the report well-designed management and advisory on the results of the bilateral exercise. The system. bilateral comparison between Georgia and Q4. What are your expectations from the Armenia has since been completed and final- 2011 ICP? ized. The proposed text and four tables to be included in the report have been sent to the Q1. What is your role as a member of the 2011 is, in a sense, the full fruition of the Global Office. Two of the tables cover, with Technical Advisory Group (TAG) of the 2005 project, with two rounds under fully some additions and omissions, the standard 2011 ICP round? professional and expert guidance. 2011 will ICP analytical categories while the others My role is to be part of a group where the establish the project for the future, providing cover goods and services by type and provide total is a lot more than the parts. One of the not only a benchmark, but a set of compari- a breakdown of final consumption expendi- reasons I love the TAG is that no one under- sons between two years. I think that 2011, ture. The report still needs to be approved by stands everything that is going on - except together with 2005, will set the ICP on a well- senior management in Geostat and Armstat. perhaps Alan Heston - but together, we are a founded, sustainable, and useful path. Publication is expected to be towards the end terrific problem solving unit. And it is an of the third quarter of 2013. Dissemination amazing privilege to be with such a diverse 2013-2014 Milestones and Activities will be through the Geostat and Armstat web- group of skills, statisticians, managers, econo- sites. mists, country experts, and academics and October  Submission of final 2011 price Singleton Countries - Iran practitioners. 2013 data for the GCL, expenditures, regional PPPs The final Bilateral Meeting between the Cen- Q2. How long have you been working with and metadata tral Bank of The Islamic Republic of Iran and PPP data and how do you use them con-  Status report and preliminary the ICP Global Office took place in Istanbul, cretely in your research? results confidentially circulated to the Executive Turkey from July 1-5, 2013. The purpose of Not quite sure, but about 15 years, when I Board the meeting was to: (a) review Iran’s status of first became interested in the problem of  9th Executive Board meeting the implementation of the ICP; (b) discuss measuring global poverty, where the  Submission of final 2005 issues related to the linking of Iran with the measures depend on PPP calculations. Since expenditures and metadata rest of the world in the global comparison; (c) then, I have become much more interested in finalize Iran’s household consumption data; the general issues, and have worked on PPPs November  Preliminary results computed (d) validate data related to other ICP areas; more broadly, for example in my paper with 2013 by Computation Task Force and (e) assess and improve the quality of their Alan Heston in the American Economic Jour-  Computation Task Force ICP National Accounts data. nal Macro in 2010. meeting International Comparison Program (ICP) I also made heavy use of PPP numbers in my  Submission of final regional results Development Economics Data Group new book The Great Escape: health, wealth,  Final results circulated to the (DECDG) and the origins of inequality, that was just ICP review group The World Bank, 1818 H Street, NW published. Here I look at global poverty and Washington, D.C. 20433 USA global inequality—both crucially dependent December  Release of 2011 ICP Global Phone: 1 800 590 1906 on PPPs—and I spend quite some time (in 2013 Results Chapter Six) explaining PPPs in layman's (from inside the US)  Report to the 45th session of terms. I make heavy use of the essential Brit- the UNSC +1 202 473 3930 ish good, Marmite. Further information on the (from outside the US) book is available at Email: ICP@worldbank.org March  Publication of 2011 ICP Final http://press.princeton.edu/titles/10054.html 2014 Report Web: www.worldbank.org/data/icp