The U.S. Census Bureau’s Tool for Assessing Statistical Capacity (TASC) provides a quantitative measure of the capacity of a National Statistical Office (NSO) to conduct Population and Housing Censuses or recurring household-based surveys. The primary objective of TASC is to measure the overall capacity of an NSO, as well as provide a breakdown of the areas of strength and weakness.

TASC results:

aid NSOs in identifying areas where improvement is needed,
assist NSOs and donors to justify the need for funding for training in specific areas, and
provide a measure of the impact of capacity building activities by being administered at two points in time, before and after.

The TASC version 2.1 is available in both paper-based and digital versions, and TASC version 2.0 is available in both English and Spanish.

Videos

Training of Trainers: Tool for Assessing Statistical Capacity

In this training of trainers, you will learn how to use the TASC to assess statistical capacity. You will also learn about the objectives of the tool, the TASC administration process, and the presentation of results. Though this video focuses on administration of the paper based TASC, its description of objectives, modules, and presentation of results remains relevant for the digital version.

The Tool for Assessing Statistical Capacity (TASC) has become the most widely utilized tool to assess the capacity of national statistics offices to conduct Population and Housing Censuses and household-based surveys in low to middle income countries. The primary objective of TASC is to measure the overall capacity of an NSO, as well as provide a breakdown of the areas of strength and weakness. TASC results help countries target training to those statistical and operational areas that need it most. It has been translated into many languages, such as Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian. It was developed by the International Programs Center of the U.S. Census Bureau and sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Tool for Assessing Statistical Capacity (TASC)

This second video of the TASC training of trainers is designed for administrators to learn how to use the paper based TASC Results Calculator. The paper based TASC Results Calculator is an Excel workbook. The video demonstrates how data entered into the TASC modules automatically populate tables and graphs that tell a story about the statistical capacity of an NSO. Tables and graphs generated can then be used in the presentation of the results by the administrator.

How to Use the TASC 2.1 Digital

The third video of the TASC training of trainers is designed for administrators to learn how to use the TASC 2.1 Digital. The TASC 2.1 Digital is the web-based version of the TASC questionnaire and answer sheet that makes it easier for respondents to answer the questionnaire and for administrators to collate responses. The video demonstrates how responses to TASC 2.1 Digital questionnaire modules can be transferred to the Results Calculator to produce summary tables and graphs.