NAN-HE-17
Implementation
By Cecilia Ologunagba
Abuja, Dec. 15, 2016 (NAN) The National Consultative Committee on Statistics (NCCS) has urged all states governments and the FCT to support the implementation of State Statistical Master Plan to strengthen statistical activities in the country.
This recommendation is contained in a communiqué read by Samuel Adokole, a Principal Statistician with the National Bureau of Statistics (NSB), at the end of the 2-day meeting of NCCS in Abuja on Thursday.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that NBS also inaugurated the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics II (NSDS II) 2017 – 2021, as well as the Sector Statistic Strategy at the meeting.
The committee said that the implementation of the State Statistical Master Plan (SSMP) at the sub-national level of government was necessary for statistical reform at the state level.
It recommended that development partners should be mobilised to complement government’s funding for the implementation of the NSDS II, so as to avoid the set-backs encountered during the NSDS I.
“State Statistical Agencies (SSAs) that have not yet put in place State Bureaus of Statistics should expedite action.
“They should expedite action by ensuring that the necessary instruments (SSMP and Statistics Law) needed to achieve that are immediately developed and implemented accordingly.’’
The committee also recommended that efforts should be made by NBS to ensure the establishment of Statistical Trust Fund.
It said the Fund should be established with appropriate modalities worked out to support the development of statistics in the three tiers of government.
“NBS should as a matter of urgency, implement the provision of pooling system for Statisticians in the 2007 Statistics Act, as a way of supporting the development of statistics in the Planning Research and Statistics Departments of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
“ NBS should champion the crusade for statistical awareness and consciousness among government functionaries through programmes such as visits to some MDAs and States.
“The bureau should champion dialogue on statistics and assessment of the performance of government with facts within a given fiscal year, among other initiatives.’’
In addition, the committee recommended that government should provide adequate financial resources to ensure effective implementation of the NSDS II and Sector Statistics Strategy.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that NCCS’ mandate in accordance with Statistics Act 2007, is among other things, to coordinate, harmonise and standardise the processes of producing official statistics in the country.
The NCCS meeting provides a forum where producers and users of official statistics deliberate on issues relating to the development of the national statistical system. (NAN)
CIA/MOL/EEE
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Edited by Mustapha Lamidi/Ese E. Ekama