At the IAOS conference in Amman, Jordan in end of 2004, we presented two papers addressing the system and technical requirements of a sustainable poverty monitoring system for policy decisions to be implemented by a national statistical office. We are now able to present this Smart approach as tested and implemented, implemented by a national statistical office, NSO, Malawi, and tested towards a traditional (but expensive) survey system in another country, UBoS, Uganda. Since 2004 the demand from policy makers for statistics on poverty (both measured by total consumption and by a multi-dimensional approach) with fast delivery and high reliability has steadily increased. Still the global statistical community has yet to deliver a common comprehensive approach. This system and statistical model is a contribution towards an approach for a smart and innovative solution.

This paper comprises two parts, one presenting the system as implemented by NSO, Malawi and one presenting a rigorous test of the model using an extensive household survey program implemented by UBoS, Uganda.

In 2004 we presented the approach in 8 elements, such as Identification of indicators to monitor achievement of goals such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), Statistical modeling, and a 5-10 year household survey program. The overall objective of a regular measurement of major MDGs was achieved. The paper presents the achievements of the various elements in detail.

Since the early 1990s UBoS has carried out a substantive household survey program based upon a series of household budget surveys often combined with sector modules. These surveys have allowed us to test the reliability of the statistical model applied in Malawi. Again the overall objective of a reliable estimate of poverty head counts was met, in fact not only met, but to a remarkable degree. At the same time, the detailed analysis show that even small changes in the survey approach or data cleaning approach have a substantial impact on the poverty estimates, whether measured by a series of household budget surveys or by the proposed model approach.