THE Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) and Unicef have launched a national survey to collect critical data on living standards, with findings set to influence government policy and budget allocations.
The Fourth Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, which commenced fieldwork in October, targets nearly 11 000 households.
According to officials, the survey is a primary tool for measuring the country's progress towards its National Development Strategy 2 (NDS 2) and Sustainable Development Goals.
“The survey will generate crucial indicators to monitor the baseline for NDS 2 planning and Vision 2030,” said Aluwisio Mukavhi, ZimStat's director for demography and social statistics.
The project, operating under a partnership formalised in April 2024, carries a revised budget of US$2,3 million.
The government has contributed US$480 000 with Unicef providing US$1,2 million and other UN agencies adding US$250 000.
“We expect preliminary results by April 2026 and a full report by June 2026,” said Unicef deputy representative Fiachra McAsey.
He said the current fieldwork, which began on October 21 and ran until the end of January, is just one phase of a process that included questionnaire design, translation, extensive enumerator training and complex analysis.
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Fieldwork, employing digital tools for real-time monitoring, is currently underway across 401 enumeration areas and will continue until late January.
It includes remote regions such as Ruwange in Nyanga North, visited by monitoring teams this week.
Preliminary results are expected by April 2026, with a final comprehensive report slated for June 2026.
The data will be disaggregated to ward and district levels, providing detailed evidence on demographics and vulnerable groups to guide resource distribution.
