‘CELEBRATING Guyana’s Many Achievements in Official Statistics’ is the theme of an exhibition being staged by the Bureau of Statistics (BOS) at its High Street, Kingston, Georgetown premises.
The showing is part of celebrations planned by the agency to observe World Statistics Day, today and Caribbean Statistics Day, observed last Friday. Statistician at BOS, Mr. Joel Persaud said the agency is trying to increase its visibility because many persons are not aware of its existence.
“We go on the road and persons see the jersey and ask if we’re from the Bureau of Standards,” he revealed.
Persaud said the event, started yesterday and continuing through noon today, is the first to commemorate Caribbean Statistics Day since it was designated by CARICOM in 2009.  
Materials on exhibit include information on the origin of statistics, such as on HIV/AIDS, Maternal and Child Health, Child Protection, Domestic Violence, demographics and more.
The records date back to 1921, as a British Guiana census report of that date attested.
Persaud said the fruit of the labour of the hard working staticians also produced data from other agencies, including Bank of Guyana, Ministry of Agriculture and Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC).
The BOS has benefitted from a rebasing of its data profile, said other statistician, Mr. Karley McLennon, who said the main reason for the undertaking is that the profile of Guyana’s economy has changed since the former base year of 1988. The new base or reference year is now 2006.
As part of the observance, too, BOS personnel also visited a number of schools and lectured about the importance of statistics.
The BOS is the central authority on statistics in Guyana and is often requested to assist and advise ministries and public or private sector institutions on related matters.
Its functions include conducting censuses and surveys; collecting, compiling, analysing, abstracting and publishing statistical information, collaborating with other departments of Government in the processes and publishing what is culled from administrative records and organising a coordinated scheme of social and economic facts on Guyana.