By: David Shoombe
In commemoration of Statistics Awareness Day, the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) and the Bank of Namibia (BoN), co-hosted an event highlighting the importance of statistics for national development.
One of the key issues discussed by the presenters was inadequate funding delaying high-quality statistics that support informed decision-making and can delay Namibia’s socio-economic development.
Speaking to The Villager Newspaper, the Statistician-General of the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), Alex Shimuafeni, emphasised the need to prioritise funding for Namibia’s statistics to ensure the country has accurate and up-to-date data for informed decision-making.
Shimuafeni indicated that the production and dissemination of statistics are essential for the country’s development.
He acknowledged that there are competing national priorities when it comes to funding statistics.
“When we conducted the 2023 Census, we were actually supposed to have done it in 2021,” he said.
Shimuafeni explained that the census had been postponed because priority was given to addressing the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Shimuafeni noted that when it comes to data communication, statistics are guiding tools and should be communicated neutrally in order to make informed decisions.
He added that when it comes to data communication, it is imperative not to communicate statistics with emotions in communication to the public and to decision-makers.
Addressing the audience at the same event, the governor of the Bank of Namibia, Ebson Uanguta, indicated that, “Statistics are far more than just numbers on a page. They tell the story of our nation. They reveal where we have made progress, where challenges remain, and how the economy has evolved.”
The governor also noted the progress that Namibia has made in compliance with international standards by officially being subscribed to the IMF’s Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS) since December 2022.
He said this shows that the country has graduated from the Enhanced General Data Dissemination System (e-GDDS), which the country had been part of since 2016.
Jim Tebrake, the Deputy Director of the IMF Statistics Department, has indicated that good data pays off in development through cheaper access to capital, sharper and better-targeted policies, increased investment, and stronger economic growth.
Tebrake has therefore emphasised that, when it comes to development, public leaders must be able to cite and defend data, even when the findings are not welcome.
He further noted that timely statistics are more valuable for prioritisation and targeted interventions than waiting for statistics that take longer to produce.
