Partnerships for the Goals
Trade in services and trade in services statistics
The service sector is central to a diversified economy, and trade in services plays a similarly important role in a country’s trade portfolio. Detailed trade in services statistics is essential for policymaking, trade negotiations, and identifying economic opportunities. However, significant data gaps remain in trade in services statistics, particularly in details on services traded, partners and mode of supply. Enterprise and establishment surveys are especially effective for collecting these details. TiSSTAT is designed to maximize the potential of surveys while addressing their challenges. It reduces the response burden for the enterprise and reduces the costs associated with conducting surveys.
Methodological choices applied in TiSSTAT
TiSSTAT offers a set of methodological choices that allows conducting a survey from sampling to reporting results. Data validation rules and imputations are defined in relationship to the TiSSTAT questionnaire. Sampling and extrapolation methods are designed with stratification in mind and are internally consistent.
Acknowledgments
The TiSSTAT information system was developed at UNCTAD as a product of a multi-year collaboration with the Commission for the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) and statisticians from UEMOA member states, the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The questionnaire
The TiSSTAT questionnaire was developed in collaboration with the UEMOA Commission for implementation across UEMOA countries. Its design was informed by a thorough desk review to ensure its relevance and utility, and enriched by consultations with NSOs of experienced countries to incorporate their expertise and insights. The questionnaire encompasses all EBOPS service categories, excluding Travel, and includes detailed sub-items for each category. The questionnaire provides disaggregation by partner for all items and incorporates disaggregation by mode of supply, following the simplified allocation recommended in MSITS.
TiSSTAT - The Multi-User Application
TiSSTAT is designed to allow users to enter and exit the application at different stages of statistics production, providing flexibility in its implementation. The information system supports the entire survey process, from sampling to reporting, offering a comprehensive solution. TiSSTAT is installed on the survey institution’s server and enables secure access for multiple users via internet connections. It includes an electronic questionnaire that leverages interactivity to ask only relevant questions, enhancing response completeness and coherence. TiSSTAT features tools to ensure the quality of compiled statistics, prioritizing reproducibility and confidentiality throughout the process.
Introduction
TiSSTAT is an information system with an integrated questionnaire, a multi-user application and associated methodology to conduct enterprise or establishment surveys for trade in services statistics.This paper presents the information system, its motivation and its implementation.
Prerequisites for successful surveys
To maximize the effectiveness of TiSSTAT implementation, it is essential to consider certain preconditions specific to the national context. Clearly defining the statistical mandate, framework, and institutional arrangements in the country is essential before conducting any survey. Crucially, the validity of the survey relies directly on the accuracy of the sampling frame, and the most effective way to address this challenge is through a comprehensive and up-to-date business register. Survey institutions should also plan proactively to ensure that a successfully implemented survey can be replicated in future years.
TiSSTAT: An Information System for Compiling Trade in Services Statistics Through Enterprise Surveys
International trade in services is crucial for economic growth, supporting income, productivity, and resilience. Strengthening service linkages boosts development, with services trade playing a key role in achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. However, there remain considerable data gaps in trade in services statistics. Enterprise and establishment surveys are among the most important sources of trade in services statistics and offer the potential to fill data gaps relating to breakdowns by partner and mode of supply. The Trade in Services Statistics Information System (TiSSTAT), developed at United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), leverages the potential of online surveys and helps to overcome the challenges related to them. This technical paper presents an information system with three main elements: a questionnaire, a set of methodologies that go together with the questionnaire, and a multi-user application that helps reduce response burden and the cost of surveying, while supporting statistical authorities in the compilation of reliable, transparent and detailed trade in services statistics.
Concluding remarks
The methodology presented in this note offers a tool for designing trade and industrial policies that foster inclusive growth. It can assist governments in monitoring progress and aligning trade strategies with broader social and sustainable development goals. While data limitations and correlation-based results warrant cautious interpretation, the framework provides flexibility and actionable insights for incorporating social outcomes into trade policy decisions.
Data
The analysis uses international trade and economic data to assess export inclusiveness. Inclusiveness is measured by data on by income equality, gender equality, and labor market formality across countries. The resulting dataset covers over 100 countries and supports cross-country comparisons and policy analysis on the inclusiveness of export patterns.
Acknowledgements
This document was prepared by Alessandro Nicita of the UNCTAD Division on International Trade and Commodities, with inputs and comments from various colleagues at the Division and from the UNCTAD Statistics Service.
Measuring export inclusiveness
The methodology to assess the inclusiveness of each product relies on classifying products based on observed data on whether the countries exporting them are deemed inclusive or less inclusive across several dimensions. It then aggregates these product-level scores into a country-level export inclusiveness index, reflecting the extent to which a country’s trade is concentrated in products linked to more inclusive economies.
Impact of export inclusiveness on GDP per capita
Taking export inclusiveness into account is important, as countries whose exports are concentrated in more inclusive sectors generally see higher income growth, regardless of overall export size or wider social policies. This evidence highlights the role of trade policies that foster inclusive production to promote economic growth, with robustness checks supporting the consistency of these findings.
Summary
Understanding how inclusive trade is has become increasingly relevant as countries aim to promote equitable economic outcomes. This note proposes a method to evaluate how inclusive a country’s exports are by considering key economic dimensions. The proposed indicators allow for comparisons across countries and overtime, providing insights into how a country’s trade composition relates to broader economic outcomes, including income growth and social equity.
Inclusiveness of exports and countries
Analysis of export patterns suggests that some sectors tend to be more inclusive than others, with less-inclusive products appearing more often in labor-intensive industries and more inclusive products concentrated in high-value or technologically advanced sectors. However, there is substantial variation in inclusiveness across both product types and countries’ export baskets.
Measuring Export Inclusiveness
Understanding how inclusive trade is has become increasingly relevant as countries aim to promote equitable economic outcomes. This note proposes a method to evaluate how inclusive a country’s exports are by considering key economic dimensions. The proposed indicators allow for comparisons across countries and overtime, providing insights into how a country’s trade composition relates to broader economic outcomes, including income growth and social equity.