BIDS SURVEY FINDS: 71pc users unsatisfied with BBS data

Staff Reporter :

A recent survey by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) reveals that only 29.39 per cent of users are satisfied with the quality of data provided by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

The survey, which included input from 1,333 users, also found that 55.59 per cent of respondents are somewhat satisfied with the statistics, while 11.64 per cent are somewhat unsatisfied, and 3.39 per cent are totally unsatisfied.

The findings were released in a report titled User Satisfaction Survey (USS-2024) on Thursday.

The survey sample included 22.28 per cent female respondents, with the majority (54.99 per cent) coming from academic institutions.

Other respondents were from government organizations (8.93 per cent), research institutions (8.55 per cent), financial institutions (8.03 per cent), and development partners (7.80 per cent).

The report shows that 64.34 per cent of users are satisfied with the accuracy of official BBS statistics, while 25.58 per cent expressed dissatisfaction. In terms of timeliness, 54.36 per cent of users were satisfied, compared to 38.56 per cent who were dissatisfied.

Relevance of the statistics garnered the highest satisfaction rate, with 77.06 per cent of users expressing approval, while 16.81 per cent expressed dissatisfaction.

When it comes to the frequency of the data provided, 47.88 per cent of respondents were satisfied, while 42.88 per cent were not.

Compared to the previous USS 2022 report, the latest survey indicates an overall improvement in user satisfaction with data accuracy, timeliness, and relevance.

The survey also revealed that population, demographic, and vital statistics are the most frequently used by 68.57 per cent of respondents, followed by income and poverty statistics (60.77 per cent) and national accounts statistics (54.91 per cent).

On the other hand, statistics related to information and communication technology (17.18 per cent) and crime and judicial statistics (7.88 per cent) were the least utilized.

The survey noted that users with a PhD degree or from academic backgrounds showed similar patterns in their use of BBS data.

While overall usage has increased compared to 2022, the survey recorded a slight decline in the use of population, demographic, and vital statistics.

Interestingly, approximately 40.98 per cent of respondents use BBS data with no fixed periodicity, a slight drop from 46.57 per cent in the 2022 survey.