About Our Data

The data in the Livelihoods Explorer (LEX) is derived from data collected and stored in Livelihood Baseline Storage Sheets (BSS) created using the Household Economy Approach (HEA) as laid out in the Practitioner’s Guide to HEA. These Baselines may or may not have been conducted by FEWS NET staff and the BSSs included in LEX may or may not be owned by FEWS NET.

The information available in this section relates to FEWS NET’s Baseline data collection activities since 2025. The HEA process is still underway in some of these countries, in which case a Baseline is not yet available in LEX but will most likely be available in the future.

Materials used in all countries can be found below. To view country specific resources, translations, products, and data, choose a country page.

Orientation workshop

This workshop convenes key partners, government officials, and stakeholders working in food security, humanitarian assistance, and development. The aim is a comprehensive orientation on the FEWS NET mission and our work, highlighting the market fundamentals and livelihoods research components, implementation activities, and milestones in the country. The workshop aims to build awareness for this work by developing buy-in for the activities and seeking opportunities for partnership.

Design and planning

Study protocol

Questionnaires

Literature and secondary data review

• Literature review process

Livelihood Zone review workshop

The goals of this two-day workshop are to:

• Initiate a targeted review of the existing Livelihood Zone map by incorporating stakeholder input gathered prior to the workshop on specific zones that potentially require reassessment.

• Avoid a full remapping by focusing only on flagged zones.

• Develop guiding questions and proposed revisions to be verified during baseline fieldwork and presented at the validation workshop.

• Compile relevant secondary data sources to support the review process.

• Establish a preliminary map of any proposed revisions based on secondary data and expert judgment for validation during Livelihood Baseline Data Collection.

Field data collection

Field data collection process

• Data management plan

• Data quality assurance process

• Data quality checklist for interviewers

• Data quality checklist for team leaders

• Key informant selection

• Primary data collection process

Baseline assessment training

• Interviewer training: This six day workshop is held with enumerators to prepare them to conduct HEA interviews in the field.

  • Facilitator notes

  • Handouts

  • Training slides

• Team leader training

  • Facilitator notes

  • Handouts

  • Training slides

  • HEA Practitioner Guide Team Leader supplement

Field manuals

• Interviewer manual

• Team Leader manual

Data analysis and validation

Data analysis plan

• Primary data analysis process

• Primary data cleaning process

Validation workshop