How are costs estimated when direct expenditure data are not available?

What will be an ideal response?

When direct expenditure data are not available, the analyst may turn to market price estimates for the cost of a particular program component. The market price is what a given program component would cost if purchased in the economic context within which the program operates.Sometimes, neither actual expenditures nor market prices represent the true value of a resource required to operate a program, or they are not available for that resource. The preferred procedure for estimating cost in those circumstances is to use shadow prices, also known as accounting prices. Shadow prices are derived prices for goods and services that are supposed to reflect their true economic value.Another cost component often relevant for cost–benefit analysis of social programs is opportunity costs. The concept of opportunity costs follows from recognition that individuals and organizations must choose how to allocate their resources from some set of reasonable and appropriate options. The opportunity cost of each choice is the value of the foregone options.