2022/2023 QUARTERLY EMPLOYMENT AND EARNINGS INQUIRY
13th Series
Zambia, 2023 - 2024
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Reference ID
ZMB-ZSA-EEI-2023-V1.0
Producer(s)
Zambia Statistics Agency
Metadata
Created on
Jan 29, 2026
Last modified
Jan 29, 2026
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Identification
Survey ID Number
ZMB-ZSA-EEI-2023-V1.0
Title
2022/2023 QUARTERLY EMPLOYMENT AND EARNINGS INQUIRY
Subtitle
13th Series
Country
| Name | Country code |
|---|---|
| Zambia | ZMB |
Study type
Enterprise Survey [en/oth]
Series Information
The Quarterly Employment and Earnings Inquiry (QEEI) is an establishment based sample survey conducted by the Zambia Statistics Agency (ZamStats). The survey was first undertaken in 2004 and has been conducted quartly every year since then though there was a break in 2016 to 2022.
The 2023 EEI is the 13th in the series.
It collected data that enabled the estimation of changes in formal sector employment and earnings as well as economic activities of the establishment.
ZamStats, within the framework of the second National Strategy for Development of Statistics (NSDS2), conducted the EEI with a reference period of 2022 and 2023. The last EEI was conducted in 2015.
The 2023 EEI is the 13th in the series.
It collected data that enabled the estimation of changes in formal sector employment and earnings as well as economic activities of the establishment.
ZamStats, within the framework of the second National Strategy for Development of Statistics (NSDS2), conducted the EEI with a reference period of 2022 and 2023. The last EEI was conducted in 2015.
Abstract
The Employment and Earnings Inquiry (EEI) was an establishment based sample survey conducted by the Zambia Statistics Agency (ZamStats). It collected data that enabled the estimation of changes in formal sector employment and earnings as well as economic activities of the establishment. The purpose of this survey was to collect data on formal sector employment, earnings and vacancies whose main focus was to collect data on the total number of workers, total wage bill and vacancies as of the reference period. This exercise was part of monitoring the country’s economic performance and job creation.
The general objective of the survey was to identify and analyze employment created in the economy. The main objective of the 2022/2023 EEI was to collect and disseminate basic statistics in respect to employment stocks and flows, indicative of the newly created jobs in the formal sector of the labour market. In addition, the EEI aimed at providing estimates of monthly earnings for workers in the formal sector.
The specific objectives were:
- To produce statistics on job creation and earnings in the formal sector
- To measure the levels of decent work in the formal sector
- To produce statistics on the number and type of vacancies in the formal sector
- To measure quarterly changes in employment levels in the formal sector
The target population for this survey was all formal establishments that were operating in Zambia in the years 2022 and 2023. The inquiry also targeted Central Government (line Ministries and departments), Local Government (councils), all incorporated private establishments, (including Non- Governmental Organizations) and all parastatals. All the industries were represented in the sample except the Activities of households as employers and Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies. In terms of geographic coverage, all the ten (10) provinces were covered.
The general objective of the survey was to identify and analyze employment created in the economy. The main objective of the 2022/2023 EEI was to collect and disseminate basic statistics in respect to employment stocks and flows, indicative of the newly created jobs in the formal sector of the labour market. In addition, the EEI aimed at providing estimates of monthly earnings for workers in the formal sector.
The specific objectives were:
- To produce statistics on job creation and earnings in the formal sector
- To measure the levels of decent work in the formal sector
- To produce statistics on the number and type of vacancies in the formal sector
- To measure quarterly changes in employment levels in the formal sector
The target population for this survey was all formal establishments that were operating in Zambia in the years 2022 and 2023. The inquiry also targeted Central Government (line Ministries and departments), Local Government (councils), all incorporated private establishments, (including Non- Governmental Organizations) and all parastatals. All the industries were represented in the sample except the Activities of households as employers and Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies. In terms of geographic coverage, all the ten (10) provinces were covered.
Kind of Data
Sample survey data [ssd]
Unit of Analysis
All formal business establishments including:
Central Government (line Ministries and departments)
Local Government (councils)
All incorporated private establishments (including Non- Governmental Organizations)
All parastatals
All the industries
Central Government (line Ministries and departments)
Local Government (councils)
All incorporated private establishments (including Non- Governmental Organizations)
All parastatals
All the industries
Version
Version Description
V1.0: Edited, anonymised dataset for public distribution
Version Date
2025-02
Scope
Notes
Scope and coverage:
The target population for this survey was all formal business establishments that were operating in Zambia in the years 2022 and 2023. The inquiry targeted Central Government (line Ministries and departments), Local Government (councils), all incorporated private establishments, (including Non- Governmental Organizations) and all parastatals. All the industries were represented in the sample except the Activities of households as employers and Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies.
The target population for this survey was all formal business establishments that were operating in Zambia in the years 2022 and 2023. The inquiry targeted Central Government (line Ministries and departments), Local Government (councils), all incorporated private establishments, (including Non- Governmental Organizations) and all parastatals. All the industries were represented in the sample except the Activities of households as employers and Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies.
Topics
| Topic |
|---|
| Identification Particulars |
| General Information (Firmographics) |
| Employment |
| Decent Work |
| Salaries and Wages |
| Staff Turnover |
Keywords
| Keyword |
|---|
| Employed Population |
| Average Earnings |
| Institutional Sector |
| Turnover |
| Business Establishment |
| Economic Activity |
| Formal Sector |
| Employment Stocks |
| Employment Flows |
| Business Register |
| Vacancies |
| Enterprise |
| Industrial Economic Sector |
Coverage
Geographic Coverage
National
Universe
The survey covered all formal Business Establishments
Producers and sponsors
Primary investigators
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Zambia Statistics Agency | Ministry of Finance and National Planning |
Producers
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Ministry of Labour and Social Services | GRZ | Technical Assistance: Questionnaire Design |
Funding Agency/Sponsor
| Name | Abbreviation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Government of the Republic of Zambia | GRZ | Funded the survey |
| World Bank Group | WBG | Funded the survey |
Other Identifications/Acknowledgments
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Zambia Revenue Authority | MOF | Provision of the Establishment Frame |
Sampling
Sampling Procedure
The sampling frame for the survey was the Statistical Business Register (SBR) maintained by ZamStats. The SBR contains a total of 433,492 formal business establishments in Zambia. The Formal Sector Quarterly Employment and Earnings survey was conducted on a probability sample of about 2,000 formal sector business establishments drawn from the SBR.
For the 2023 Employment and Earnings Inquiry (EEI), the existing business register at Zambia Statistics Agency (ZamStats) supplemented by registers from Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA), and Patent and
Company Registration Authority (PACRA) served as the sampling frame, with a total number of 154,652 business establishments. A total of 2,025 business establishments were selected based on predetermined categories corresponding to the size of the establishments, as measured by the number of employees. The stratification (stratums) was based on grouping establishments based on the number of employees.
The sampling frame was developed by matching entries from the two registers, ensuring that three conditions were met before finalization:
1. Identification of cases present in the ZRA register but absent in the ZamStats register.
2. Identification of cases present in the ZamStats register but absent in the ZRA register.
3. Identification of cases present in both registers.
This process led to the creation of a single working business register to serve as the sampling frame for the survey.
The strata ranked from Stratum 1 which had all establishments with 500 or more employees to Stratum 300 which had establishments with 5 or less employees. A systematic random sampling design was employed to select establishments from each of the corresponding categories within the sampling frame on a case-by case basis. All establishments with more than 500 employees as well as all City, Municipal and District Councils were selected using a 100 percent sampling approach to ensure comprehensive data collection from all large businesses.
For the 2023 Employment and Earnings Inquiry (EEI), the existing business register at Zambia Statistics Agency (ZamStats) supplemented by registers from Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA), and Patent and
Company Registration Authority (PACRA) served as the sampling frame, with a total number of 154,652 business establishments. A total of 2,025 business establishments were selected based on predetermined categories corresponding to the size of the establishments, as measured by the number of employees. The stratification (stratums) was based on grouping establishments based on the number of employees.
The sampling frame was developed by matching entries from the two registers, ensuring that three conditions were met before finalization:
1. Identification of cases present in the ZRA register but absent in the ZamStats register.
2. Identification of cases present in the ZamStats register but absent in the ZRA register.
3. Identification of cases present in both registers.
This process led to the creation of a single working business register to serve as the sampling frame for the survey.
The strata ranked from Stratum 1 which had all establishments with 500 or more employees to Stratum 300 which had establishments with 5 or less employees. A systematic random sampling design was employed to select establishments from each of the corresponding categories within the sampling frame on a case-by case basis. All establishments with more than 500 employees as well as all City, Municipal and District Councils were selected using a 100 percent sampling approach to ensure comprehensive data collection from all large businesses.
Response Rate
The response rate for the 2023 EEI was 87 percent.
Refusals and non contacts are some of the causes for the non-response.
Refusals and non contacts are some of the causes for the non-response.
Data Collection
Dates of Data Collection
| Start | End |
|---|---|
| 2023-12 | 2024-03 |
Data Collection Mode
Face-to-face [f2f]
Supervision
A team of enumerators was led by a supervisor. The supervisor provided the data collectors with questionnaires and other materials and he/she was responsible for organizing the day-to-day survey activities. During field work, the enumeartors kept regular contact with their supervisor, hence the supervisor was responsible for ensuring conduct and performance of the Enumerators under his or her supervision.This also enabled him/her to make adjustments to the programs of work. If any problems were encountered, the enumeartors were supposed to report to the supervisor, such as any establishment refusing to be interviewed.
The Supervisor was iin direct contact with the Enumerators as he/she was responsible for ensuring conduct and performance of the Enumerators under his or her supervision. He or she ensured that enumerators made follow-ups to establishments where questionnaires were left. The Supervisor performed a vital function in the case of the fieldwork. The supervisory functions in the field could be divided into three areas: allocating assignments for interviewing, work and quality control.
The general functions of the Supervisor included:
(i) Organizing the Enumerators to successfully complete their assignments.
(ii) Ensuring that the work completed by the enumerators meets the required standards.
(iii) Communicating with the Master Trainer and Provincial Head on a regular basis reporting on the progress of the fieldwork, relaying problems encountered in the field.
(iv) Attending to directives on field operations and provided resolutions to problems where possible.
(v) Allocating Establishments to Enumerators
(vi) To supervise the Enumerators under him/her on a daily basis.
(vii) Editing completed questionnaires for legibility, completeness, consistency etc.
(viii) Ensure that all completed questionnaires were signed and stamped by the establishments.
The most important task of a supervisor in the field was to provide day-to-day supervision of the Enumerators and their work, editing completed questionnaires for legibility, completeness and consistency. The supervisory functions in the field could be divided into three areas: allocating assignments for interviewing, work and quality control.
The Supervisor was iin direct contact with the Enumerators as he/she was responsible for ensuring conduct and performance of the Enumerators under his or her supervision. He or she ensured that enumerators made follow-ups to establishments where questionnaires were left. The Supervisor performed a vital function in the case of the fieldwork. The supervisory functions in the field could be divided into three areas: allocating assignments for interviewing, work and quality control.
The general functions of the Supervisor included:
(i) Organizing the Enumerators to successfully complete their assignments.
(ii) Ensuring that the work completed by the enumerators meets the required standards.
(iii) Communicating with the Master Trainer and Provincial Head on a regular basis reporting on the progress of the fieldwork, relaying problems encountered in the field.
(iv) Attending to directives on field operations and provided resolutions to problems where possible.
(v) Allocating Establishments to Enumerators
(vi) To supervise the Enumerators under him/her on a daily basis.
(vii) Editing completed questionnaires for legibility, completeness, consistency etc.
(viii) Ensure that all completed questionnaires were signed and stamped by the establishments.
The most important task of a supervisor in the field was to provide day-to-day supervision of the Enumerators and their work, editing completed questionnaires for legibility, completeness and consistency. The supervisory functions in the field could be divided into three areas: allocating assignments for interviewing, work and quality control.
Data Collection Notes
The data collection for the EEI utilized paper-based questionnaires, primarily gathered through face-to-face interviews with relevant officials in the sampled establishments. However, a smaller segment of establishments with email addresses opted for electronic questionnaires distributed via email. This mixed-method approach aimed to maximize response rates and improve the accuracy of the collected data. Through this methodology, the EEI sought to provide a reliable measurement of employment trends within the Zambian business landscape for the years in question.
Before data collection, enumeartors were subjected to a 5 days training.
A team of enumerators was led by a supervisor. The supervisor provided the data collectors with questionnaires and other materials and he/she was responsible for organizing the day-to-day survey activities. During your field work, the enumeartors kept regular contact with their supervisor, hence he/she was responsible for ensuring conduct and performance of the Enumerators under his or her supervision.This also enabled him/her to make adjustments to the programs of work. If any problems were encountered, the enumeartors were supposed to report to the supervisor, such as any establishment refusing to be interviewed.
Before allocating establishments to the Enumerators, Supervisors and the Enumerators carefully reviewed the selected establishments. They kept the following points in mind when allocating assignments:
(i) Plan the work carefully so that it would be completed within the allocated time.
(ii) Show no favouritism when giving assignments. Large establishments, which were difficult to enumerate, were divided as equally as possible.
(iii) Enumerators were provided with sufficient questionnaires to complete their assignment.
The interviews were mainly conducted in English. The data collection exercise was undertaken between December 2023 and March 2024 with a reference period of 2022 and 2023.
Before data collection, enumeartors were subjected to a 5 days training.
A team of enumerators was led by a supervisor. The supervisor provided the data collectors with questionnaires and other materials and he/she was responsible for organizing the day-to-day survey activities. During your field work, the enumeartors kept regular contact with their supervisor, hence he/she was responsible for ensuring conduct and performance of the Enumerators under his or her supervision.This also enabled him/her to make adjustments to the programs of work. If any problems were encountered, the enumeartors were supposed to report to the supervisor, such as any establishment refusing to be interviewed.
Before allocating establishments to the Enumerators, Supervisors and the Enumerators carefully reviewed the selected establishments. They kept the following points in mind when allocating assignments:
(i) Plan the work carefully so that it would be completed within the allocated time.
(ii) Show no favouritism when giving assignments. Large establishments, which were difficult to enumerate, were divided as equally as possible.
(iii) Enumerators were provided with sufficient questionnaires to complete their assignment.
The interviews were mainly conducted in English. The data collection exercise was undertaken between December 2023 and March 2024 with a reference period of 2022 and 2023.
Data Collectors
| Name | Abbreviation | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Zambia Statistics Agency | ZamStats | Ministry of Finance and National Planning |
Questionnaires
Questionnaires
A detailed questionnaire was used for collecting information during the 2023 EEI survey from sampled establishments about their employees.
The questionnaire used to collect data was administered to each establishment and collected information required in the questionnaire. Data collected included; earnings, turnover as well as economic activities of the establishment.
The questionnaire was published in English.
The questionnaire used to collect data was administered to each establishment and collected information required in the questionnaire. Data collected included; earnings, turnover as well as economic activities of the establishment.
The questionnaire was published in English.
Data Processing
Data Editing
Editing and Quality Control
The success of this exercise depended to a large extent on the accuracy and completeness of the questionnaire. In order to guarantee both accuracy and completeness, the enumeartors were responsible for
certain quality control activities: editing all completed questionnaires.
Completed questionnaires were edited by the supervisor immediately after being received from the enumeartors in order to bring the editing work to manageable levels. Editing consisted of checking for:
a. Accuracy
b. CompletenessC
c. Consistency
d. Legibility.
Errors that were discovered were taken note of and discussed by both the Supervisor and Enumerators at planned meetings. If there were errors in any of the questionnaires, they were given them back to the Enumerator to correct by contacting the establishment again. Enumerators made follow-ups to establishments where questionnaires were left.
Data editing took place at a number of stages throughout the processing, including:
a) During data collection by the monitors
b) Office editing and coding
b) During data entry
d) Secondary editing
e) Structural checking of SPSS data files
The success of this exercise depended to a large extent on the accuracy and completeness of the questionnaire. In order to guarantee both accuracy and completeness, the enumeartors were responsible for
certain quality control activities: editing all completed questionnaires.
Completed questionnaires were edited by the supervisor immediately after being received from the enumeartors in order to bring the editing work to manageable levels. Editing consisted of checking for:
a. Accuracy
b. CompletenessC
c. Consistency
d. Legibility.
Errors that were discovered were taken note of and discussed by both the Supervisor and Enumerators at planned meetings. If there were errors in any of the questionnaires, they were given them back to the Enumerator to correct by contacting the establishment again. Enumerators made follow-ups to establishments where questionnaires were left.
Data editing took place at a number of stages throughout the processing, including:
a) During data collection by the monitors
b) Office editing and coding
b) During data entry
d) Secondary editing
e) Structural checking of SPSS data files
Other Processing
The survey was conducted using paper-based questionnaires, primarily gathered through face-to-face interviews with relevant officials in the sampled establishments. After data collection, the information was then entered manually.
After the data collection and entry, all data files were merged and thereafter the following was conducted:
a. Export to SPSS
b. Data cleaning
c. Recording of variables needed for analysis
d. Adding of sample weights
e. Structural checking of SPSS
f. Data quality tabulations
g.Production of analysis tabulations
After the data collection and entry, all data files were merged and thereafter the following was conducted:
a. Export to SPSS
b. Data cleaning
c. Recording of variables needed for analysis
d. Adding of sample weights
e. Structural checking of SPSS
f. Data quality tabulations
g.Production of analysis tabulations
Access policy
Contacts
| Name | Affiliation | URL | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head of Dissemination | Zambia Statistics Agency | info@zamstats.gov.zm | Link |
Confidentiality
The Agency shall, where statistics are designated as official statistics, protect the confidentiality and identity of the source of data.
Under the provisions of the Statistics Act No. 13 of 2018, ZamStats is obliged to preserve the confidentiality of respondent information in all its census and survey data.
Before being granted access to the dataset, all users have to formally agree:
1. To make no copies of any files or portions of files to which s/he is granted access except those authorised by the Agency.
2. Not use any technique in an attempt to learn the identity of any person, establishment, or sampling unit not identified on public use data files.
3. To hold in strictest confidence the identification of any establishment or individual that may be inadvertently revealed in any documents or discussion, or analysis. Such inadvertent identification revealed in her/his analysis will be immediately brought to the attention of the Agency.
Access conditions
Micro data records are anonymised as per procedures before these are made available to users. Micro data files are all free but under Access Policy Conditions:
Each dataset has an access policy: Public use file - Accessibility to all and - Licensed datasets, accessible under conditions. The dataset has been anonymised and available as a Publiv Use Dataset. It is accessible to all for statistical and research purposes only, under the following terms and conditions:
1. The data and other materials will not be redistributed or sold to other individuals, institutions, or organizations without the written agreement of the Zambia Statistics Agency.
2. The data will be used for statistical and scientific research purposes only. They will be used solely for reporting of aggregated information, and not for investigation of specific individuals or organizations.
3. No attempt will be made to re-identify respondents, and no use will be made of the identity of any person or establishment discovered inadvertently.
Each dataset has an access policy: Public use file - Accessibility to all and - Licensed datasets, accessible under conditions. The dataset has been anonymised and available as a Publiv Use Dataset. It is accessible to all for statistical and research purposes only, under the following terms and conditions:
1. The data and other materials will not be redistributed or sold to other individuals, institutions, or organizations without the written agreement of the Zambia Statistics Agency.
2. The data will be used for statistical and scientific research purposes only. They will be used solely for reporting of aggregated information, and not for investigation of specific individuals or organizations.
3. No attempt will be made to re-identify respondents, and no use will be made of the identity of any person or establishment discovered inadvertently.
Citation requirements
Zambia Statistics Agency (2023). 2023 Employment and Earnings Inquiry Survey, Lusaka, Zambia
Access authority
| Name | Affiliation | URL | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zambia Statistics Agency | Ministry of Finance and National Planning | info@zamstats.gov.zm | Link |
Disclaimer and copyrights
Disclaimer
ZamStats will not bear any responsibility for the erroneous use of its data by researchers. Users should report inconsistencies in the data (both micro and aggregated) to ZamStats as soon as possible.
The user of the data acknowledges that the original collector of the data, the authorized distributor of the data, and the relevant funding agency bear no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or inferences based upon such use.
The user of the data acknowledges that the original collector of the data, the authorized distributor of the data, and the relevant funding agency bear no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or inferences based upon such use.
Copyright
(c) 2025, Zambia Statistics Agency
Metadata production
DDI Document ID
DDI-ZMB-ZSA-EEI-2023-V1.0
Producers
| Name | Abbreviation | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zambia Statistics Agency | ZamStats | Ministry of Finance and National Planning | Study Documentation |
Date of Metadata Production
2026-01-16
DDI Document version
Version 1.0 (January 2026)