The National Bureau of Statistics [NBS], on Monday held a one-day sensitization workshop for journalists in Abuja.
The workshop was aimed at strengthening the media as an effective vehicle for the dissemination of statistical data generated by the bureau.
Mr. Yemi Kale, Statistician-General of the federation said his organisation decided to embark upon the capacity building workshop in order to equip journalists with in-depth knowledge and understanding of the process of generating statistical data and the content of the data for effective dissemination by journalists.
He said the workshop has come at a time it has become necessary to reinforce the eagerness of the Nigerian public to use data for decision making and evaluation of government policies and programmes.
Kale, who was represented at the event by Mr. Isiaka Olarwaju, director, real sector and household statistics of NBS, said taking journalists through the process of generating statistical information is a fundamental approach to avoiding misinterpretation of data.
“Misinterpretation of data by the media could spell a wrong signal for investors that want to invest their monies into our economy to improve the economic situation of the country”, he said.
The workshop presented an opportunity for key officials of NBS and other renowned experts to take journalists through the painstaking processes of data production as well as exploring the content and interpretation of the statistical data produced.
Mr. S. B. Harry, head of department, corporate planning, stressed the importance of statistics in the life of the nation, which he said, has warranted the effort of NBS to strengthen its dissemination and increase its use in decision making.
He said it is NBS that tells the country where the economy, pointing out that failure to use the statistics in the pasts has resulted in many abandoned projects.
Harry hinted of new developments that would enhance the role of NBS in the economy very soon. He said the bureau has been designated to produce data mapping for social development goals – which will make available baseline data for monitoring the level of attainment of these goals.
Also in process is the development of the Nigerian data nervous system – a network of all data producing agencies in the country where all the data are linked up in a central system for easy access.
He said the system started running but was held down by funding challenges. He however commended the federal government for concrete steps taken to make funding available to NBS to support its general operations.
In consideration of the importance of providing accurate and timely data for prompt policy actions by government and other economic operators at this time, emphasis on proper funding of NBS received a major emphasis in the communiqué issued at the end of the workshop.
Various departments of the bureau demonstrated their superior skills, professionalism and the high ICT capacity deployed in the processes of data collection, processing and production of various statistical data. Mr. Biyi Fafunmi, head of IT department of NBS demonstrated the high ICT capacity employed by the bureau in production of its statistical data.
He said NBS has in place the latest technology involving the best practices that can be found in a modern national office of statistics in the world.
The methodologies used by NBS for the production of key statistical data were explained to participants at the workshop. These include GDP compilation, computing consumer price index, employment and unemployment statistics and trade statistics.
In the communiqué issued at the end of the workshop, participants expressed satisfaction with the significantly increased capacity that NBS has built since its reform in 2005.
Its promptness in the release of data and its non-compromising stance in giving accurate statistical figures were considered to have placed the government in a good position to make informed policy decisions in directing the economy.
The workshop provided an interactive platform for NBS and the media that bridged a gap which its absence for some years has created. To this extent, the communiqué requested that the forum be held regularly in order to sustain and further reinforce the capacity building initiative of NBS in the media.
