In 2015, the Statistical Institute of Jamaica has partnered with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to execute a survey of the informal sector in Jamaica.The Informal Sector Survey (ISS) was conducted in two phases. The first phase involved the creation of two (2) sampling frames:

1. Household-based enterprises (Household businesses) – which were identified from the Labour Force Survey January 2015
2. Visible establishments – which were identified from the Listing of Establishments 2015 (conducted January to March 2015)

The second phase of the survey, involved the collection of data from the units identified from the Labour Force Survey January 2015 and the Listing of Establishments 2015.

The School-to-Work Transition Survey (SWTS) generates relevant labour market information on young people aged 15 to 29 years, including longitudinal information on transitions within the labour market. This survey serves as a critical instrument in assessing the challenges that youth in Jamaica face in the pursuit of decent and satisfactory employment

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) in 2013 conducted the School-to-Work Transition Survey on behalf of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) and the International Labour Organization (ILO). This survey was again conducted in 2015.

The SWTS serves the following purposes:

1. It detects the individual characteristics of young people that determine labour market disadvantage. This, in turn, is instrumental to the development of policy response to prevent the emergence of risk factors, as well as measures to remedy those factors that negatively affect the transition to decent work.
2. It identifies the features of youth labour demand, which help to determine mismatches that can be addressed by policy interventions.
3. In countries where the labour market information system is not developed, it serves as an instrument to generate reliable data for policy-making. In countries with a reasonably developed labour market information system, the survey helps to shed light on areas usually not captured by household-based surveys, such as youth conditions of work, wages and earnings, engagement in the informal economy, access to financial products and difficulties experienced by young people in running their business.
4. It provides information to governments, the social partners and the donor community on the youth employment areas that require urgent attention.

The Jamaica National Crime Victimization Survey is designed to provide information on the nature and type of crime in Jamaica. Most estimates on the amount and nature of crime are derived from police reports. However, evidence has proven that a significant number of crimes are never reported to the police. Crime victimization surveys provide useful information to fill the gap between official reported crime data and actual rates of criminal offending. The Statistical Institute of Jamaica conducted the Jamaica National Crime Victimization Survey on behalf of the Ministry of National Security (MNS) in 2006, 2009 and 2012/13.

The primary purpose of the Jamaica National Crime Victimization Survey (JNCVS) is to obtain, from respondents who are sixteen (16) years of age and older, an accurate and up-to-date measure of the amount and kinds of crime committed. The JNCVS also collects detailed information about specific incidents of criminal victimization within a twelve-month reference period.The primary objectives of this survey are to:

• Provide data on the type and incidence of crimes not reported to the police;
• Provide uniform data on specific types of crime which form the basis for future comparisons at the community, national and international level;
• Develop detailed information on criminal victimization, including demographic data on victims;
• Generate important comparative data on the outcome of targeted social interventions in specific communities;
• Provide information on trends in criminal activity in Jamaica

The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) provides up-to-date information on the situation of children and women and measures key indicators that allow countries to monitor progress towards global development goals such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other internationally agreed upon commitments. The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) conducted the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) in Jamaica in2000, 2005 and 2011.

The primary objectives of the MICS are to:

• Support evidence-based progress and policy formation
• Evaluate countries’ progress in making available key interventions for child and maternal survival and well-being.
• Evaluate disparities between sub-groups within countries.
• Track trends in key areas including progress toward national commitments.
• Identify new areas of concern for government.

The Caribbean Broadband and ICT Indicators Survey presented a baseline analysis of the access to and use of ICT in Jamaica. This survey was executed by STATIN on behalf of the Telecommunications Policy and Management Unit (TPM) of the Mona School of Business, UWI in collaboration with UWI St. Augustine, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Observatory for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean (OSILAC), CARICOM and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada in 2010.

ICTs are globally regarded as one of the key drivers of economic growth and development, especially in developing countries. The information gathered through this survey may be used for studies and analyses of the Caribbean Information Society and can inform policy and other key decision makers on how to better enable access and utilization of these technologies for social and economic development.