Seven-member Board of Ghana Statistical Service inaugurated
A seven-member Board of the Ghana Statistical Service has been inaugurated at a ceremony, held at the Ministry of Finance, in Accra.
The Board, which is chaired by Dr. Grace A. Bediako, has the Acting Government Statistician, Mr. Baah Wadieh; Mr. Nicholas Okoe Sai; Ms. Galina Okartei-Akko; Prof. Abena D. Oduro; Dr. Benjamin Amoah; and Dr. Robert Darko Osei, as members.
A statement issued by the Finance Ministry, on Wednesday, said the Deputy Minister for Finance, Mr Kwaku Kwarteng, who inaugurated the Board on behalf of the President, congratulated them on their appointment, noting that, with their passion and demonstrated commitment to the development and use of statistics in the country, their tenure of office would bring substantial advancement to that field.
Mr Kwarteng stated that currently, there was increasing demand for credible data for evidence-based decision making as well as to measure the implementation of the President’s Coordinated Programme for Social and Economic Policies; Ghana’s next medium term development policy framework, 2018-2021; the Sustainable Development Goals; and the AU Agenda 2063.
He said Ghana’s data needed to meet international quality standards, while its practices conformed to the United Nations Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics.
He, therefore, charged the Board to ensure that the Ghana Statistical Service lived up to expectation, the statement said.
Mr Kwarteng said the areas that required the Board’s immediate attention included the engagement of a substantive Government Statistician to spearhead upcoming major exercises, namely the conduct of the Census of Agriculture and the 2020 Population and Housing Census.
He also urged them to ensure the review of the Statistical Service Act, a draft of which was currently under consideration and assured them of the Government’s continued support and readiness to provide the requisite resources to enable them to succeed in their national assignment.
Dr. Bediako, on behalf of the Members, expressed their appreciation for the confidence reposed in them to serve the nation.
She said the Board was ever ready to provide the Government with the urgent needed advice on current statistical developments and what was required to meet the outstanding obligations from Ghana’s decentralised planning system and its regional and international commitments.
It would also enhance the image of the Ghana Statistical Service, both home and abroad.
Source: GNA