Capacity Building: Achievements and Issues of National Statistical System of Sri Lanka D. B. P....
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Transcript of Capacity Building: Achievements and Issues of National Statistical System of Sri Lanka D. B. P....
Capacity Building: Achievements and Capacity Building: Achievements and IssuesIssues
of National Statistical System of Sri of National Statistical System of Sri LankaLanka
D. B. P. Suranjana Vidyaratne, Director General, Dept. of Census and D. B. P. Suranjana Vidyaratne, Director General, Dept. of Census and Statistics – Sri LankaStatistics – Sri Lanka
Steering Committee Meeting of UNSD and Leaders of National Statistical Offices of SAARC Countries -
21st July 2008: Colombo
National Statistical System of Sri Lanka
1. The statistical system in Sri Lanka is a mixed system but more closer to a centralized system.
2. Sri Lanka’s National Statistical Agency is the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS)
3. DCS plays co-ordinatory and technical supervisory role over the statistical branch offices in Ministries, Departments and Provincial, District and Divisional administration
4. DCS provides trained statistical cadres required by the branch offices and provincial / district offices etc.
5. The legal authority vested in the DCS under the Census and Statistics Ordinances has enabled the DCS to successfully undertake most of the statistical operations in a coordinated manner.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
1. Provide opportunities for staff to further their studies
2. Increase participation of officers in international training, seminars and workshops
3. Participate in international activities
4. Provide statistical advisory services
5. Use computer assisted technology for survey interviews and coding
6. Set up databases
7. Hold forums to publicize the findings
8. Increase personnel skill training programme
9. Document all job processes for future reference
10. Improve sampling techniques
11. Strengthen Special Studies and Research
12. Set up a statistical training institute
13. Publish statistical journal for articles based on research findings
14. Implement job rotation
15. Provide incentives for personnel who create innovative products and services
16. Form think-tank groups to produce innovative statistical products
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Provide opportunities for staff to further their studies
The staff of the Department is encouraged to further their studies
For selected courses the Department fully funds the course fee and for other courses, partly
Duty leave is also granted for studies
Department fully utilizes the scholarships received from various organizations including the
United Nations agencies to train its staff
DCS recently compiled a resource directory of training institutes
In this directory particulars such as names of the international agencies providing
training, their contact details, course fees etc are included
It is now very convenient to find a place for training whenever we need to train our staff
on specific areas and necessary funds are available
We need to explore the possibility of sharing expertise of our countries in the region by
means of training, exchange programmes etc
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Increase participation of officers in international training, seminars and workshops
DCS is trying its best to get opportunities from donors to send its officers
for international seminars and workshops.
Attempts are also made to increase participation of officers by finding
assistances from donors. A few examples for this are:
Recently assistance were obtained from UNICEF to send few officers
abroad for training on database management.
With the assistance from the Ministry of Finance and Planning, a
group of 30 officers were sent to India for training.
With funds available under the UNDP assisted MDG programme,
several officers were sent out for training.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Participate in international activities
DCS willingly participates at international activities. A few examples for this are
Conducting the Demographic and Health Survey in collaboration with the
Macro International. Under this activity DCS got an opportunity to train its
staff on a wide range of statistical activities covering questionnaire design to
report writing
Sri Lanka is one of the Asian countries participating in the Accelerated Data
Programme implemented in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank.
With this programme DCS commenced archiving all statistical products of
the Department including micro data, publications, questionnaires etc.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Provide statistical advisory services
The Department has set up statistical units in most of the government
Departments and Ministries.
Trained statistical staff of the DCS are posted to these units.
Statistical advisory services to government Departments and Ministries
are provided mainly through these units.
Advisory services are provided to privates sector, UN organizations etc in
a limited way.
Due to staff and other limitations, DCS cannot entertain all requests on
statistical advisory services.
By providing advisory services, DCS get an opportunity to further
strengthen interactions with other agencies.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Use computer assisted technology for survey interviews and coding
The Department is testing computer assisted coding with Household Income and
Expenditure Survey.
Partly, data entry of this survey has been decentralized.
Based on the success of above activities, this technology will be extended to all
other surveys and censuses.
Computer assisted technology is yet to be used for survey interviews.
Initial cost of computer assisted technology for survey interviews is high. But it is
likely to help improving accuracy, reliability and timeliness of statistics.
IMPS software package, which has facilities for computerized editing, validation,
imputations and tabulations is largely used for data entry and processing of survey
and census data at DCS.
DCS is lacking ICT infrastructure particularly on remote data transferring.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Set up databases for internal and external use towards more effective data dissemination system
The MDG database and another few interactive databases have already been
included in the Department’s website.
A Meta database for the Department is being prepared under the Accelerated Data
Programme, with the assistance of Asian Development Bank.
Access to this Meta database will be given to users through the DCS website.
All micro data (of the National Statistical System) will be archived and released to
the users in accordance with the conditions laid down in the Data Dissemination
Policy of the Department.
This is the first systematic attempt that the DCS made to archive its data.
A copy of the Data dissemination Policy is available in the DCS website.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Hold forums to publicize the findings
DCS holds forums to publicize findings.
Frequency of holding such forums are not at satisfactory levels due to
resource limitations.
When DCS estimated poverty indices at lower level administrative units,
large number of such forums were held to publicize the findings. The
government used findings for planning development programmes.
Regular quarterly press briefings are held to release National Accounts,
labour force statistics etc.
DCS staff get an opportunity to meet the press and other users through
these forums.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Increase personnel skill training programme
DCS train its staff not only on the subject matter but also on other skills
such as presentations, administration etc.
DCS does not have enough resource persons for this area.
Sri Lanka Institute for Development Administration (SLIDA) is a
government agency that has been established to train mainly government
officials in many fields including personnel skills.
DCS officers are sent to places like SLIDA for such training programmes.
DCS also invite eminent personnel in this field to conduct programmes to
its staff.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Document all job processes for future reference
Documentation is important in providing a resource for evidence-based
decision making.
In the light of this, the technical divisions are preparing manuals to
documenting all methods, procedures etc. of surveys, censuses and
special studies conducted by them.
Availability of well documented manuals ensure smooth flow of activities
in the divisions even in the absence of officers due to taking leave,
retiring, migrating etc. Any officer taking over can follow the manuals and
continue the work.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Improve sampling techniques
DCS has a Sample Survey Division and qualified samplers.
Well defined household sampling frame has been prepared and sample of
household are drawn using this frame for all household surveys.
Sampling techniques will further be improved for establishment based
surveys.
Sample survey division will be further strengthened to provide advisory
services on sampling which is in high demand from many organizations
who want to conduct studies for their own purposes.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Strengthen the special studies and research
DCS has undertaken several important studies under ‘special studies and
research’. Preparation of MDG reports, Studies on men and women are some of
those studies. Findings of these studies have found to be very useful.
Special Studies and Research should be further improved by identifying and
sending officers for specialized training in methodology and the usage of software
packages for statistical estimation, forecasting and analysis.
Research work on preparation of national accounts including review of
methodologies, estimation of national accounts at sub-national levels have now
become priority areas.
Qualitative studies are very important in analyzing unexpected situations. For
example reasoning of unexpected price fluctuations of food commodities. DCS
staff need to be trained in this area.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Publish statistical journal for articles based on research findings
DCS does not have its own journal, which would have been useful for
publishing the findings of the research work of its staff.
I suggest we launch a journal of NSO’s of SAARC region, encouraging
our staff to engage in research not only in our own countries but also in
the region as well.
At DCS, only a few officers are currently carrying out research work.
It is imperative to expose all the staff officers to this culture as without
research the subject cannot be developed.
This requires training of the officers particularly on research
methodology and report witting skills.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Implement job rotation
Staff get bored by working on the same subject and sitting in the same
place/division over a long period of time.
For duty requirements and based on the availability of vacancies staff is
transferred. Other than this DCS does not have a rotation policy.
DCS is now in the process of preparing a policy for rotation of its officers
among technical divisions.
A committee has been setup to draft this policy.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Provide incentives for personnel who create innovative products and services
A system has been introduced to issue commendation letters for
exceptional contributors.
There are limitations in cash reward system or any other way of
appreciating exceptional contributions.
According to the current system, even in promotions what matters most
is the number of years of experience and not the contributions or
innovations.
Key activities being carried out under capacity building
Form think-tank groups to produce innovative statistical products
Formation of such groups has been commenced from the the National Accounts
Division of the Department.
We need to further improve estimation methodology, verification and interpretation
of National Accounts.
Earlier, both Central Bank of Sri Lanka and the DCS used to compile National
Accounts.
Now the sole responsibility is lying with the DCS.
Therefore, lot of research, innovations etc need to be carried out in this area and
think-tank groups are expected contribute particularly in these areas.
Overall objective of forming think-tank groups is to build a dedicated and
committed workforce over the coming years.
Statistical Capacity Building Project:
Future Plans
Statistical Capacity Building Project: Future plans
With the assistance of the World Bank, DCS is to implement a
Capacity Building Project called STATCAP. It has two components
namely:
1. Capacity Building
2. Construction of a building for the DCS
Capacity Building: Key Performance Indicators - Future plans
Following are the expected outcomes of the STATCAP
1. Improved poverty monitoring, better informed economic and
social policy evaluation and decision-making
2. Annual data collection plans and long-term strategies
produced
3. Training plan established, executed and updated annually
4. Institutional reforms to strengthen capacity of the statistical
system and its autonomy and achieve fuller compliance with
international statistical standards
5. Establishing an integrated meta and database of all major
economic and social statistics and ensure that it is available
for users, measured by increase in number of visitors to
website
6. Reduction of duplicative data collection and compilations
through greater coordination
7. Improved efficiency of data collection methods through
decentralized data entry
8. Developing statistical series which are compatible with
international standards and conform to the needs of
sustained economic development
9. Making effective use of IT to achieve high efficiency in survey
design, data collection, transmission, processing,
management and dissemination
Construction of an office Building: Future plans
Construction of an office building
DCS is presently housed in seven different rented locations. This
situation has and continues to exert adverse effects on the
performance of DCS. It is time consuming and inefficient for the
units in separate locations to work together or even just meet.
That aside, the inconvenience, and cost are considerable. Under
the STATACAP it has been planned to construct a building to
house all the divisions of the DCS.
Conclusion
The ultimate target of the Department is to become a leading
statistical organization internationally while providing
customer-focused official statistical information and
statistical services of international standard, for national
planning and development through well-trained and
competent personnel, use of superior technology and
methodology, adoption of best practices in all statistical
activities and enhanced research and statistical analysis.
Thank You