At the March 21 opening ceremony for the training of field workers for the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), UNICEF Jamaica Representative, Mariko Kagoshima, said that the survey instrument had been re-designed and the field workers will use digital instruments. Among the matters that will be surveyed among children ages 7–14 are: functional learning, status of children with disabilities, health, nutrition, and protection. Survey results will be disseminated by early 2023.

KINGSTON, March 21, 2022 – Training sessions began today for field workers who will collect data for the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), one of the largest household surveys to be conducted in Jamaica.

The MICS is an international household survey programme, developed and supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). It collects data used to assess and improve the situation of children and women.

This major research effort is facilitated through a collaborative effort by UNICEF, the International Development Bank (IDB), and the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) with technical support from the Statistical institute of Jamaica (STATIN)

Over the next three weeks, 80 field personnel will be trained to administer the MICS. Between April and June 2022, these workers will visit 7,800 eligible households members across the island to administer the survey through face-to-face interviews. The data collected by the MICS focuses specifically on issues affecting children and women. It will be used to help Jamaica track progress towards achieving relevant goals under the Vision 2030 Jamaica – National Development Plan and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“The MICS survey is the only one of its kind in Jamaica that provides critical data on child protection and early childhood education. It is also a major source of internationally comparable data on child health and nutrition,” said Mariko Kagoshima, UNICEF Jamaica’s Country Representative, speaking at the launch event for the training programme. She also said, “The survey will fill an urgent need to collect new and hugely important data for the country.”

“Women and children are central to the IDB Vision 2025. We are committed to redoubling our efforts at cross-sectoral integration. In the wake of the pandemic and the massive economic and learning loss, we must know the current state of affairs as it relates to Jamaican women and children,” said Lorenzo Escondeur, Acting Representative, and Chief of Operations IDB Jamaica Country Office. “Women deserve to get the support they need to help them manage their day-to-day responsibilities, care for their families and where they own businesses, to help them better manage and scale. This survey will be crucial to help point the way forward,” he said.

In his remarks at the opening ceremony for the training, Senior Director, Social Policy Planning and Research Division, Easton Williams said, “The PIOJ is pleased to collaborate with UNICEF, as plans and programmes to benefit households need to be informed by good quality data. Social interventions have yielded positive results, but many of the benefits have been lost because of shocks to the society, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The accurate representation of information that will be provided by the MICS surveyors is vital to the national development process as it will inform the government of the best strategies going forward.”

This is the fourth time that Jamaica will participate in the MICS. The “Get in the MICS” awareness campaign is being rolled-out to motivate households to participate in the survey.

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For more information, please contact:
• Allison Brown-Knight, Communication Specialist, UNICEF Jamaica
  Email: albrown@unicef.org; Mobile: 876-279-8339
• Gwyneth Harold Davidson, Communication Specialist, PIOJ
  Email: ghdavidson@pioj.gov.jm Mobile: 876 806 4962
• Alison Christie Binger, Communication Consultant, IDB.
   Email: alisonbi@iadb.org