RAECHEL VICTORIA PANERIOStatistics That Matter to Every Filipino

Statistics can mean a lot of things to people. It can mean numbers, data, interpretations, calculations, records and the like. Only few can grasp the real essence and meaning of Statistics. Statistics covers a wide range of topics, from being a branch of Science to being a field of Mathematics. Statistics is the science of learning from data, measuring uncertainty, making computations and obtaining new and more understandable information from it. We may not know it, but Statistics is an essential part of our progress towards becoming an industrialized country. Many economic, social, political, finance and investment decisions cannot be made without statistical techniques.

Philippines has a total population of 92.34M, as of May 2010. It has a population growth rate of 2.04%, one of the highest in Asia. Statistics plays an important role in state management, since different policies of the government are based on statistics. The literacy rate of the Philippines is 86.49%. Based on the literacy rate, the education sector can brainstorm ways on how to improve this. In the field of economics, the government needs statistics in order to determine important measures in economics, such as the inflation rate, total exports, total imports and balance of trade. As of August 2013, the inflation rate of the Philippines is 2.1%, the total export is $4.84B and the total import is $4.86B. This information can help those in the business and economics field to properly assess the state our country is in terms of economics. Knowing the employment rate, unemployment rate and underemployment rate, which is 92.7%, 7.3% and 19.2% respectively, is important for the labor and employment sector as well. As you can see from the examples given, statistics are the eyes of the administration.

The Zamboanga siege is one of the most talked about events today. According to the National Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council, more than 82,000 people with 16,533 families from the 15 barangays have been affected by this crisis, with thousands forced to flee their homes and seek shelter in evacuation centers within the city. To aide those who were affected, the 289 members of the House of Representatives have adopted a resolution allowing the chamber to deduct P10, 000 from the salaries of each congressman. Statistics makes it easier to understand this data.

Statistics is the development and application of methods to collect, analyze and interpret data. This is particularly useful in conducting experiments, research and theses. It may involve the design and computation methods of the experiment, to analyze the results in a much easier and efficient way. For example, in the Philippines, where 643, 959 college students take up Business Administration and Related courses according to the Commission on Higher Education, Statistics is a vital part of their lessons.

Statistics is a vital part of every one of us, even if we may not notice it. We must learn to understand and appreciate it more, for without statistics, our country would be in chaos right now. Statistics matter to every Filipino, in little and in big ways.