Statistics, development and the future of Africa
Statistics does not seem to feature very much in Africa’s socio-economic development agenda, despite its importance and the fact that the use of good quality data has the ability to impact on development outcomes.
Public sector institutions in most African countries do not keep good records and often statistical institutions are poorly funded and do not have the adequate number of human resources to function effectively.
However, the 7th Africa Symposium on Statistical Development (ASSD) has amplified the importance of statistics and its relevance to Africa’s socio-economic development as well as cutting poverty and attaining Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The collection of data, its processing and dissemination as well as civil registeration and vital statistics systems are very essential components of the resources required for development planning. For instance birth and death registeration, marriage and divorce, number of children as well as health statistics are required for planning and project implementation.
There is an urgent need to invest in infrastructural development, education, health and create jobs for the continent’s teeming youth and unemployed, the use of accurate timely statistics is very necessary in this endeavour.
The collection and use of such essential data are guided by laws, but not many African countries have laws governing statistics.
However,African statisticians meeting in Cape Town, South Africa have sought to put statistics at the centre of development issues in Africa.
The 7th Africa Symposium on Statistical Development (ASSD) and the third Statistical Commission for Africa (StatCom Africa III), sought to shift focus from Housing Censuses to Civil Registeration and Vital Statistics systems (CRVS) for the next five years beginning from 2012.
According to organisers, civil registeration is the convention data source for the generation of continuous and complete vital statistics that provide key health and demographic statistics, including many of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) indicators. Furthermore, it says, civil registeration produces various legal and administrative information documents that are the basis for safeguarding basic human rights, including children’s and women’s rights. It adds, civil registeration can also provide critical information required for the implementation of decentralisation and democratisation processes currently progressing in most African countries.
The organisers say despite the importance accorded to the system, almost all African countries lack adequate CVRS.
According to Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, South Africa’s Home Affairs Minister, the situation of inadequate civil registration and vital statistics in Africa had led to poor planning and development efforts.
In a video recorded address she expressed the view that past poor civil registerations were the results of colonialism, and of apartheid in South Africa’s case, which considered Africans as sub-humans.
She said statistical tools would help countries plan properly to address basic issues of education, health, infrastructure and other development parameters.
And in recognition of the relevance and importance of statistics in pushing Africa’s development efforts forward, the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) announced a further commitment of $50 million towards assisting statistical development efforts on the continent. The Bank over the last 10 years has mobilised close to $100 million in direct grants to assist African countries to strengthen their statistical capacity building efforts, the Bank’s Chief Economist and Vice President Prof. Nthuli Ncube said at the meetings.
“January 18, 2012, the AfDB board will be considering another proposal to mobilize $50 million towards assisting statistical development efforts on the continent,” he told the conference.
Citing the 4th Aid Effectiveness Conference in Busan, South Korea, which was held in December 2011, he said donors and partners at the conference recommitted themselves to improve aid delivery by systematically and effectively leveraging resources to boost development results – particularly in Africa where the challenges are immense.
“The crucial role of statistics in promoting public accountability, transparency and good governance was on the agenda. The focus on measuring results particularly the success of the MDGs as we approach the target year of 2015, has brought to the fore the importance and urgent need for reliable statistics,” he said.
According to Prof. Ncube, “We need statistics to support the strenuous efforts governments are making towards poverty reduction and the social and economic betterment of their people.”
He added that statistics has a role in furthering the good governance and human rights agenda.
The conferences are calling for aligning of statistical tools across the continent as well as laws to make the use of vital statistics a central part of development on the continent.
By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi