Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) announced in a press statement on Friday, 11 October 2013, that it has decided to \u201cexplore possible digital alternatives to the paper-based collection which currently informs the [Consumer Price Index (CPI)].\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Stats SA, the aim is to equip its field force with hand-held devices which will be able to remotely download and upload data.<\/p>\n
Stats SA said that CPI, which it publishes monthly, is South Africa\u2019s primary measure of inflation, the Consumer Price Index (CPI).<\/p>\n
\u201cFeeding into the inflation rate are approximately 65,000 prices, collected by 100 field workers across more than 20 different towns, cities and rural areas,\u201d Stats SA said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor each individual price, a paper questionnaire is generated in Pretoria, dispatched to a regional office and sent back to Pretoria for capturing once the data has been collected,\u201d the government department said.<\/p>\n
To kick start the move to digital collection, Stats SA said it has advertised for \u201cExpressions of Interest\u201d from possible suppliers of digital data collection technology.<\/p>\n
Stats SA said the advertisement can be found on\u00a0its website<\/a>. and that there is a compulsory information session on 17 October at 11:00 at the Stats SA office in Pretoria.<\/p>\n How mobile is lifting South Africa\u2019s GDP<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Customs goes digital<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\nMore on digital SA<\/h3>\n