– as Gov’t launches National Data Summary Page

GUYANESE and other stakeholders will now have greater access to pertinent data for assessing economic performance and development, with the launch of the National Data Summary Page (NSDP).

The NSDP will be hosted by the Guyana National Bureau of Statistics (GNBS) on its website, as part of the agency’s adoption of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s Enhanced General Data Dissemination System (E-GDDS). “The output of which will be hyperlinks to data and statistical reports published by the Bureau of Statistics, Bank of Guyana and the Ministry of Finance. The data will be easily accessible through digital devices in accordance with a dissemination schedule and will facilitate evidence-based planning and decision making,” said Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan during the launch of the NSDP at the Ministry of Finance, on Wednesday.

According to the minister, the online platform will would be useful to policymakers and scholars interested in conducting research and analysis.

“The platform will also ensure that Guyana adheres to international standards on transparency in the dissemination of statistical information. We will be joining many of our Latin American and Caribbean neighbours, including Jamaica, Suriname, Panama and Paraguay who have already launched their NSDP,” said Minister Jordan, adding that it displays greater transparency and accountability, which can boost economic stability, as information for economic decisions becomes available to all.

With “first oil” around the corner, the minister said it is important to ensure that the capacities of regulatory agencies are constantly enhanced and optimised, so that government can maintain high levels of transparency and accountability, both of which are inextricably linked to the country’s ability to generate and disseminate, in a timely manner, appropriate data and statistics.

The minister, as such, believes that the implementation of the IMF’s e-GDDS is a key achievement and will require continued cooperation and diligence since this and much of the country’s other reporting obligations are not one-off exercises.

This implementation will encourage the punctual dissemination of data, including data regarding national accounts, central government operations, central government gross debt, balance of payments and exchange rates, the creation and publication of an annual release calendar (ARC) and providing detailed information about statistical practices.
The GDDS itself is part of a broader IMF Data Standards Initiative launched in 1996 to help address macroeconomic data deficiencies, which contributed to the emerging economies’ financial crises during the early 1990s.

It is widely acknowledged that the adoption of internationally recognised standards, or codes of good practices, can help to improve economic policymaking and strengthen the international financial system.

The international financial community has relied on the IMF and other standard-setting agencies to develop standards and codes covering several economic and financial areas, including data dissemination, fiscal, monetary and financial policy transparency, banking regulation and supervision, securities and insurance regulation, accounting, auditing, bankruptcy and corporate governance.

“In this regard, the Coalition Government has consistently advanced initiatives that are designed to improve both the quality and quantity of national data. It is for this reason that, without hesitation, we ensured that the Bureau of Statistics has a permanent secretariat for the first time since its incorporation in 1957, and that its Board was reconstituted in 2015, with its first non-ministerial chairman,” said Minister Jordan.
He said government has supported several critical surveys, including the MICS, the Labour Force Survey and the Household Budget Survey.

“I vividly recall launching the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS), which allows for the harmonisation of the statistical system of the country. But simply, the NSDS enables all government agencies to share information with each other in an enhanced format for capacity building and support, as necessary,” said the minister, adding that it allows Guyana to advance its ability to generate and share accurate statistical data with the public, sister agencies and development partners, in a timely manner.

In this regard, Jordan believes that in a time when Guyana faces heightened demands for accountability, and when accurate data is integral to forecasting outcomes, especially in the oil and gas sector, the launch of the e-GDDS is most welcome.

There, however, remains a challenge involving the paucity of skills at the Bureau and the primary-data-generating agencies.

“If truth be told, this paucity is pervasive throughout the public sector. The government remains committed to reducing and, eventually, eliminating this deficit through a number of initiatives, including better remuneration, and training and retraining,” said Minister Jordan.
In this regard, public servants have benefitted from significant wage increases over the last four years and there has been a marked rise in domestic and overseas training and the availability of scholarships.

Specifically, as it relates to data, since 2015, nearly 1000 public servants have benefited from training in key concepts of monitoring and evaluation.

Government has also completed the first Voluntary National Review of the implementation of the SDGs this year, and has begun data clinics with the Ministry of Education to assist in the preparation for data development plans to ensure appropriate data is collected, and aligned with national priorities, and the Green State Development Strategy– GSDS.
These efforts are intended to build the competencies of public officials to appreciate the importance of data and its role in decision-making, as well as to equip them with the skills to effectively undertake evidence-based planning.

“I anticipate that, soon, the Bureau will fully operationalise the Poverty Measurement and Analysis Unit; continue to expand the coverage of the Consumer Price Index; commence the Agriculture Census; and complete the rebasing of the GDP. We have a lot to look forward to and a lot of ground to cover, as we move into 2020,” said Minister Jordan.
He believes that the country has come a far way in making data available to the wider public; something that was unheard of for 23 years.

He said this government recognises that the work of the bureau is pivotal to the functioning of, not only government, but also the wider economy and, as such, they remain committed to supporting the bureau’s work.