Viewpoint: High-frequency phone surveys on COVID-19: Good practices, open questions

Following the onset of the pandemic, face-to-face survey data collection efforts came to a halt due to lockdowns, mobility restrictions, and social distancing requirements. In response, national statistical offices (NSOs) and survey practitioners in low- and middle-income countries rapidly adopted phone surveys to collect timely and policy-relevant microdata. The use of phone surveys in low-income countries has been on the rise for nearly two decades, facilitated by the increased penetration of mobile phone services. Several low-income countries had experience with occasional phone-based surveys for specific topics or populations, but national level socio-economic data collection via phones had rarely been attempted. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of phone surveys, with 58 percent of NSOs reporting the use of phone surveys to collect data on the impact of COVID-19 by May 2020. The World Bank Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) has been assisting seven African countries in the implementation of High-Frequency Phone Surveys on COVID-19 (HFPS) since April 2020. Between April 2020 and June 2021, the LSMS supported 61 monthly phone survey rounds across 7 countries, amounting to over 119,000 completed interviews. The data from each phone survey round were disseminated publicly on the World Bank Microdata Library and were used to create harmonized indicators disseminated through the World Bank COVID-19 High-Frequency Monitoring Dashboard. The objective of this viewpoint is two-fold: to inform the continued implementation of such surveys during the evolving phases of a pandemic and to start reflecting on the positioning of phone surveys in the context of a post-pandemic survey system. This system is likely to be characterized by a combination of traditional face-to-face surveys with other modes that will allow for higher-frequency data collection via phone, as well as other non-traditional data sources. This model would allow cost savings, higher temporal resolution, and reduced recall burden for events that are less susceptible to recall bias. The accelerated adoption of phone surveys has highlighted the potential, limits, and challenges of implementing phone surveys in low-income settings. The experience gained from the COVID-19 pandemic has provided valuable insights into the design and implementation of phone surveys, including the importance of ensuring data quality, addressing sampling biases, and developing effective data dissemination strategies. As the world moves towards a post-pandemic survey system, it is essential to build on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and to continue to innovate and adapt survey methods to meet the evolving needs of policymakers, researchers, and the general public. The World Bank's LSMS has played a crucial role in supporting the implementation of HFPS in seven African countries. The program has demonstrated the feasibility and effectiveness of phone surveys in collecting high-quality data in low-income settings. The data collected through HFPS have been used to inform policy decisions, monitor the impact of the pandemic, and provide insights into the socio-economic impacts of the crisis. The experience gained from HFPS has also highlighted the importance of investing in data infrastructure, developing effective data dissemination strategies, and building capacity among NSOs and survey practitioners. In conclusion, high-frequency phone surveys on COVID-19 have become a crucial tool for understanding the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic. The accelerated adoption of phone surveys has highlighted the potential, limits, and challenges of implementing phone surveys in low-income settings. As the world moves towards a post-pandemic survey system, it is essential to build on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and to continue to innovate and adapt survey methods to meet the evolving needs of policymakers, researchers, and the general public.