Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Paraguay 2009

By Climate Change Solutions Division (VPS/CSD/CCS)

The Paraguay Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for 2009 provides a detailed representation of the country’s economic structure, capturing the flow of income and expenditures across productive sectors, institutional agents, and external accounts. This dataset is a foundational input for applied Paraguay economic modeling, enabling policy simulations, impact assessments, and sectoral analysis for macroeconomic planning and the design of development strategies.

This SAM includes:

  • 37 economic activities and 51 products, reflecting the diversity of Paraguay’s production and consumption landscape.
  • Disaggregated data for households, government, enterprises, and the rest of the world (external sector).
  • Comprehensive mapping of factor incomes, inter-industry transactions, and final demand components.
  • A balanced matrix structure that ensures consistency between input and output flows across the economy.

Applications

The Paraguay SAM 2009 is a crucial tool for:

  • Building Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) models
  • Conducting macroeconomic and fiscal policy simulations
  • Analyzing the distributional impacts of public investment, trade reforms, or social policies
  • Supporting evidence-based decision-making in national development planning

Economic Modeling Relevance

This dataset directly supports efforts in Paraguay economic modeling by providing the structural backbone for:

  • Scenario-based economic forecasting
  • Sector-specific multiplier analysis
  • Tracking linkages between production, income generation, and expenditure patterns

Additional Information

The data compilation follows standard SAM methodologies aligned with international best practices and is compatible with modeling platforms such as GAMS and STATA.

Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Paraguay for the year 2009, with 37 activities and 51 products.

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Metadata & use

Identifier https://doi.org/10.60966/8zijeyf0
License Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial–NoDerivs 3.0 IGO
Related Knowledge Product
Citation

Cicowiez, M., et al. (2015). Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Paraguay 2009. IDB Open Data. https://doi.org/10.60966/8zijeyf0

Published date 2015-11-13
Modified date 2026-08-26
Tags/Keywords General Equilibrium · National Accounts · Social Accounting Matrix
Language
  1. Spanish
Temporal coverage 2009-2009
Country
Paraguay
Region Latin America and the Caribbean
Publisher
Inter-American Development Bank
Author
Cicowiez, M.
Santander, H.
Inter-American Development Bank
Data collection type Administrative Data
Statistical type Cross-sectional Data
Data structure Structured Data
Data notes

What is the Paraguay Social Accounting Matrix (SAM)?

The Paraguay Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) 2009 is a comprehensive dataset that captures the structure of Paraguay’s economy in a single, consistent framework. It records income and expenditure flows between production sectors, households, government, and the rest of the world — allowing researchers to analyze how changes in one area affect others.

What does the dataset include?

The dataset contains a square matrix of 119 accounts representing: - Production activities such as agriculture, livestock, forestry, and industry
- Institutional accounts including households, enterprises, and government
- Investment and savings accounts (e.g., private and public investment)
- External sector flows (imports, exports, and transfers)

Each cell in the matrix reflects monetary flows between these accounts, providing the foundation for macroeconomic modeling and policy simulation.

How can this dataset be used for economic analysis?

The SAM supports a range of economic modeling applications, including: - General Equilibrium Models (CGE) for policy impact analysis
- Multiplier analysis to estimate the effects of changes in demand
- Sectoral linkages and income distribution studies
- Simulation of fiscal, trade, or investment policies

What period does the SAM cover?

The SAM represents the Paraguayan economy in 2009, capturing all production, consumption, and institutional relationships for that year.

Who developed the Paraguay SAM 2009?

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) developed this dataset in collaboration with Paraguay’s economic research institutions, ensuring methodological consistency with other Latin American Social Accounting Matrices (LAC-SAM).

What are some key sectors represented in the SAM?

Key activities include: - Agriculture: crops, livestock, forestry, and fishing
- Industry: food processing, textiles, chemicals, and manufacturing
- Services: education, health, administration, and infrastructure
- Investment categories: public and private, across sectors such as education, health, and infrastructure

How can policymakers and researchers use this data?

The SAM is useful for: - Analyzing the structure of Paraguay’s economy and its intersectoral relationships
- Designing fiscal and trade policies based on empirical flow data
- Estimating employment and income effects of sectoral shocks
- Evaluating the role of public investment in economic development

What are the dataset’s limitations?

  • The SAM reflects a single year (2009) and does not capture dynamic changes over time.
  • Data imputation and balancing methods introduce some uncertainty in less-documented sectors.
  • Prices are expressed in nominal local currency units, which should be adjusted for comparative analysis.

What is the most recent Social Accounting Matrix available for Paraguay?

The most recent SAM published for Paraguay is for the year 2009, constructed with 37 activities and 51 products. It was developed by Cicowiez and Santander (2015) and is openly available through the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Open Data portal.

What is the definition and components of a Social Accounting Matrix for the Paraguayan economy?

A Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) is a comprehensive, economy-wide dataset that records all transactions between production activities, factors of production, institutions (households, government), and the rest of the world. Paraguay’s 2009 SAM includes disaggregated accounts for agriculture, livestock, manufacturing, services, households, government, and external trade.

How are Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) models used with Paraguay's SAM?

CGE models use the SAM as a benchmark dataset to simulate policy shocks. For Paraguay, the 2009 SAM provides the base structure for analyzing trade liberalization, fiscal reforms, or sectoral changes, ensuring consistency with national accounts and household survey data.

What is the impact of agricultural sector fluctuations on Paraguay's GDP in SAM analysis?

Agriculture is a dominant activity in Paraguay’s SAM. The 2009 matrix shows large value flows from crops like soy and livestock into household incomes and exports. Fluctuations in these accounts directly affect GDP, with multiplier effects on rural households and government revenues.

Why is a Social Accounting Matrix necessary for evaluating poverty reduction in Paraguay?

The SAM links production activities to household income quintiles. This allows policymakers to trace how shocks—such as commodity price changes or tax reforms—affect different income groups, making it a critical tool for poverty reduction strategies.

How is informal labor captured in the construction of the Paraguay SAM?

The 2009 SAM includes factor accounts for labor, which combine formal and informal employment. Household survey data from INE were used to allocate wages and self-employment income, ensuring that informal labor and subsistence farming are represented in the matrix.

Input-Output tables focus only on inter-industry transactions. The SAM expands this by including households, government, capital accounts, and the rest of the world. In Paraguay’s case, the SAM integrates fiscal flows, transfers, and factor incomes, making it more suitable for distributional and policy analysis.

How is disaggregation of household income quintiles in the Paraguay Social Accounting Matrix?

Households are disaggregated into income-based quintiles. This allows analysts to examine how shocks to agriculture, manufacturing, or services affect poorer versus wealthier households.

What is the status of the mapping of hydroelectric power exports in the Paraguayan Social Accounting Matrix?

Hydroelectric power (from Itaipu and Yacyretá) appears under the electricity and water activity (a-electagua) and the rest of the world (row) account. The SAM records exports of these entities as flows to the government and capital accounts, reflecting their importance to Paraguay’s external balance.

Dataset files

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