COVID-19 National Longitudinal Phone Survey 2020-2021: Phase 1 (Nigeria)

Abstract

Nigeria was among the first few countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to identify cases of COVID-19. Reported cases and fatalities have been increasing since it was first identified. The government implemented strict measures to contain the spread of this virus (such as travel restrictions, school closures and home-based work). While the Government is implementing these containment measures, it is important to understand how households in the country are affected and responding to the evolving crises, so that policy responses can be designed well and targeted effectively to reduce the negative impacts on household welfare.

The objective of Nigeria COVID-19 NLPS is to monitor the socio-economic effects of this evolving COVID-19 pandemic in real time. These data will contribute to filling critical gaps in information that could be used by the Nigerian government and stakeholders to help design policies to mitigate the negative impacts on its population. The Nigeria COVID-19 NLPS is designed to accommodate the evolving nature of the crises, including revision of the questionnaire on a monthly basis.

The households were drawn from the sample of households interviewed in 2018/2019 for Wave 4 of the General Household Survey—Panel (GHS-Panel). The extensive information collected in the GHS-Panel just over a year prior to the pandemic provides a rich set of background information on the Nigeria COVID-19 NLPS households which can be leveraged to assess the differential impacts of the pandemic in the country.

Each month, the households will be asked a set of core questions on the key channels through which individuals and households are expected to be affected by the COVID-19-related restrictions. Food security, employment, access to basic services, coping strategies, and non-labour sources of income are channels likely to be impacted. The core questionnaire is complemented by questions on selected topics that rotate each month. This provides data to the government and development partners in near real-time, supporting an evidence-based response to the crisis.