Quality statistics needed to keep government in check – Prof. Gyan-Baffour

Minister for Planning, Prof. George Gyan-Baffour has stressed the need for government to track the progress in implementing its plans in order to improve the standard of living of Ghanaians.

This, he said is essential to government’s efforts to have sustained and inclusive growth.

According to him, “quality statistics from reliable sources are therefore needed to measure government’s performance and keep government in check”.

Prof. Gyan-Baffour who was speaking at the launch of a National Assessment Survey by the National Development Planning Commission and the Ghana Statistical Service noted that Ghana’s statistical system is weak.

He added that Ghana needs an improved statistical system to help the country monitor its progress in programmes such as the Sustainable Development Goals.

“An improved statistical system would help the country to undertake the voluntary national review in the implementation of the SDGs which Ghana is to present to the high-level political forum of the United Nations in April 2019,” he stated.

“Previous assessment of data requirement of SDGs undertaken by the Ghana Statistical Services and the Sustainable Development Goals 2017 baseline report suggests that the realization of these goals will depend on the capacity of the statistical system to cover a wider scope of the indicators and make them available at regular intervals for tracking and disaggregated to the lowest geographical level possible.”

Acting Director of the National Development Planning Commission, Dr Grace Bediako noted that the survey aimed to strengthen national, sectoral and district monitoring and evaluation as well as statistical systems.

She pointed out that “the joint NDPC, GSS statistics advisory committee aims specifically to help among others to promote significant appreciation of the state of statistical development, evolve a dependable and well-coordinated national statistical system and enhance the involvement of national and sub-national agencies of the decentralized, planning, research, statistics and monitoring and evaluation departments”.