Idea Transcript
Enhancing the Statistical Infrastructure S Y M P O S I U M O N S U S TA I N A B L E D E V E LO P M E N T G O A L S F O R T H E C A R I B B E A N P O R T O F S PA I N , T R I N I DA D JUNE 24 – 25, 2015 S O N I A JA C K S O N C O N TA C T: S JA C K S O N D G @ YA H O O.C O M 1
Definitions: Concise Oxford Dictionary: Infrastructure: basic structural foundation of a society or organization Ecosystem: a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment
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Definitions Other : Statisticians - are concerned with the collection, analysis, interpretation and presentation of quantitative information. (www.worldofstatistics.org/statistics-as-a-career/job-characteristics/) Data Scientists – statistics + computer science + enquiring mind (HBR Oct. 2012- Data Scientists) Statistical Infrastructure - comprises activities and services that are administered to support a strong statistical system. Professional and Statistical Services include the development of sound statistical methodology, standardized concepts and classifications (including geographic concepts), the development and provision of statistical metadata, the development and maintenance of registers of enterprises and addresses for statistical purposes, and the provision of advice with respect to the Statistics Act and data-sharing agreements. (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/eng/about/rpp/2014-2015/s02p01-4)
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Definitions Statistical Ecosystem – being analogous to a business ecosystem Definitions of Business Ecosystems*: Moore’s 1998 definition: “An extended system of mutually supportive organisations; communities of customers, suppliers, lead producers, and other stakeholders, financing, trade associations, standard bodies, labour unions, government and quasigovernmental institutions and other interested parties”. Iansiti & Levien’s Definition: “Business networks like biological ecosystems are characterized by a large number of loosely interconnected participants who depend on each other for their mutual effectiveness and survival”
* Business Ecosystem as the New Approach to Complex Adaptive Business Environment –Mirva Peltoniemi & Elisa Vuori
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Statistical Ecosystem - the elements Governance /Policy
National Statistics Office
Ministries, Department Data Management & Agencies/ National Statistics System
Data Sharing
ECLAC/ CARICOM
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Governance Data Value & Ownership - Drives the legal and financial facilitation of data identification, management and access; Statistics Laws - laws are outdated & do not cover the some of the current realities Modernization of the Statistics Acts to reflect: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦
Independence of the NSO Supremacy of the Act for statistical purposes Expand scope of coverage to include governance of the NSS Current trends in statistical services – e.g. dissemination practices Update the penalties for breaches under the Act
Access to Info. Protected by other laws – access to the information for statistical purposes should be included as an exception – where this condition exists access to he data has to be negotiated and agreed in writing 6
Policy Internal Operating Systems – modernization of internal operations to include quality management and process management, upgrade of the supporting systems, upgrade of the ICT platform, expertise & qualification of staff, etc. Statistical Products guidelines
- review and updated in accordance with international standards &
Operating Policies – documented and published, where applicable e.g. dissemination policy, communication policy; etc Code of Ethics – based on the UN Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics - adopt and own the “CARICOM Good Statistical Practices”/ “Code of Good Practice in Statistics for Latin America & the Caribbean”
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NSO Culture of Secrecy & Privacy vis-à-vis Confidentiality - restricts the sharing of data Staffing - statisticians vis-à-vis data scientists – use of big data SIDS/CARICOM – members states and associate member states all have low population numbers – disclosure of personal identity would have serious impact on data collection – anonymization of data is not always enough tp protect confidentiality Under Resourced – inadequate funding & staffing to meet the objectives required. Governments of the region need to make the commitment to have statistics adequately funded and raised to higher level of importance in the hierarchy.
Independence - “A strong position of independence is essential for a statistical agency in order to establish credibility among its users and create a relationship of mutual respect and trust. Professional independence and impartiality have to be followed throughout the whole statistical process covering development, compilation and dissemination of official statistics”. (UN Handbook of Statistical Organization 2003). The Statistics Act needs to enforce the independence of the NSO and the statistical system.
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Data Management Statistical Standards to be established across the NSS – Standards include data structure, concepts & definitions, the classification systems, etc. Data Quality issues to be identified, addressed and maintained Communications – transfer of data in electronic format to reduce the costs and time in reentering the data, telephone, internet, reliability and security of the connectivity. Technology Infrastructure – trained IT personnel, Hardware, Software – database, analytical tools e.g. SAS, SPSS, anonymization tools, Support applications – HRM, Finance, etc. Procedures – security & access, back-ups, business continuity
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MDA & NSS Governance – statistical units are governed by the dictates of the MDA in which they fall - Statistics Act does not cover the operation of these units - statistics is not the primary objective of the respective MDA Statistical Information – underutilised in decision making process National Statistics System - Coordination of Users and Producers, including civil society, to be lead by the NSO - setting standards, agreeing on data sharing mechanisms and addressing the needs of each group in a sustained manner – creating the environment for an effective ecosystem. Data Culture – the culture of measurement and the use of data to support decision making to be developed Administrative Data Sets – increased usage of information produced by the MDA to reduce the effect of low response to surveys. More attention needs to be paid to data capture, storage, retrieval and dissemination 10
Data Sharing Data Producers (Private & Public Sectors) – do not readily share data with the NSO Data Demand – increasing demand for data in lower disaggregated formats – micro data ◦ - NSS not always able to satisfy the needs of the clients within the time expected Data Discovery – users are not always able to find the information required – complaint “they didn’t know that the data existed” Access rules and conditions – are not always clear and precise and may vary from one client to another Data Dissemination Standards – not always maintained Statistics Portal – for all statistical data – country level managed by NSO linked to each producer & at the regional level
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ELAC/CARICOM Regional Organizations – using country data to compile data on the Region
Training – providing in-service training – improving the quality of country data, harmonisation of concepts & definitions, etc. – more will be required for Sustainable Development Indicators Advocacy – to raise the level of statistics within the region and seek additional support for the NSO Code of Ethics - there are two in this Region – similar but different -“CARICOM Good Statistical Practices”/ “Code of Good Practice in Statistics for Latin America & the Caribbean” CARICOM/SCCS – developed the Regional Statistics Work Programme with a 5-year Implementation Plan, the Model Statistics Bill, supporting NSS in each country. Regional Training – UWI Mona has abolished the Bachelor in Science in Social & Economic Statistics; UTech has established an Bachelor of Science in Applied Statistics but it is a weak programme
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Recommendations Modernisation of the NSO – operating systems, quality management, process management, improved ICT platform, increased staffing, etc. Adequate Funding for the NSO & the MDA (statistical units in particular) - support of ECLAC/CARICOM is essential Revision of the Statistics Acts – to give supremacy to the Act for statistical purposes, independence of the NSO, provide for dissemination of micro data under certain circumstances and governance to the NSS. Establish NSS – address the issues of (a) data sharing; (b) the data issues – classification, concepts & definition, data structure, transfer protocols and format, timeliness, metadata; (c) support by the NSO and (d) sustainable development indicators – what, how & when they are to be implemented; etc. Establish Data Management System - raise data management to a national priority & establish a national DMS - the development and execution of architectures, policies, practices and procedures in order to manage the information lifecycle needs of the NSS in an effective manner. 13
References: Business Ecosystem as the New Approach to Complex Adaptive Business Environment –Mirva Peltoniemi & Elisa Vuori – extracted from: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.103.6584&rep=rep1&type=pdf Handbook on Statistical Organization -3rd Edition
Statistical Infrastructure: Extracted from: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/eng/about/rpp/2014-2015/s02p01-4 The Millennium Development Goals Report 2014 - UNDP_MDGReport_EN_2014Final1 Gap Analysis Study: Barriers to Accessing Public Sector Data in Jamaica –Garfield Giff, January 2009, for the Public Sector Modernization Division, Cabinet Office, Jamaica
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Thank You
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