NSO celebrates int’l year of stats

CEBU, Philippines - The National Statistics Office, the primary statistical arm of the government, is spearheading the celebration of the 2013 International Year of Statistics in the country today.

Statistics 2013 is a worldwide campaign that seeks to promote the importance of statistics to the scientific community, business and government data users, the media, policymakers, employers, secondary school and college students and the general public.

In a statement, NSO said that the activity aims to gather heads and representatives of the major statistical agencies in the Philippine Statistical System which include the National Statistical Coordination Board, NSO, Statistical Research and Training Center, the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics of the Department of Agriculture, the Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics of the Department of Labor and Employment, and the Department of Economic Statistics of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

The launching forum will highlight two of the major nationwide undertaking that will be undertaken by the NSO this year – the 2013 Census of Agriculture and Fisheries and the 2013 Census of Philippine Business and Industries. The census will official start on February 25.

CAF is a large-scale government undertaking that is geared towards the collection and compilation of basic information on the agriculture and fishery sector in the country.

The collected data will constitute the bases from which our policy makers and planners will evolve plans for the country’s development.

Among the objectives of the 2012 Census of Agriculture and Fisheries are to determine the structural characteristics of agriculture and fishery sectors; provide sampling frame for the conduct of census supplementary modules on irrigation and cropping pattern, livestock and poultry, aquaculture and fisheries, and other statistical undertakings; provide data on agriculture, aquacultural, and fishery facilities and services in the barangay, among others.

Around the world, nearly 1,600 organizations in 122 countries are supporting the campaign and are planning seminars, media outreach and other promotional activities throughout the year, the statement reads.

Noel Rafols, information officer of NSO-7, said that Civil Registration Month will also be launched this February.—(FREEMAN)