A declaration from the Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development highlights Cameroon’s achievements in official statistics.

The first ever World Statistics Day will be celebrated around the globe today, Wednesday October 20 2010, under the theme, “Celebrating the many achievements of official statistics: service, integrity and professionalism”. Launching the event in Yaounde, the Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, Louis Paul Motaze has issued a Declaration in which he underscores that official statistics are important for the socio-economic development of countries, are indispensable to social and economic research and help the civil society to control the management of public affairs.

Louis Paul Motaze also stated that Cameroon will use the celebration to show its pride for the quality of data produced by the actors of the National System of Statistical Information to ensure transparency, accountability and good governance in the management of public affairs.

Cameroon has registered several achievements in the domain of official statistics since the creation of a National Institute of Statistics, NIS, by presidential decree in 2001. NIS has successfully undertaken a number of surveys that include the National Survey on Employment and the Informal Sector (2005), the National Survey on the Situation of the Woman and the Child (2006), the Third National Survey on Cameroonian Households, ECAM3 (2007), the National Report on Progress towards the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, amongst others.

More than before, access to official statistics has been made possible through a website and several publications by the National Institute of Statistics, ensuring greater transparency. Although some users have remarked that much remains to be done in the collection, treatment and update of data made available, the government Minister has reassured that Cameroon is working to improve its official statistics in several domains especially civil status, gender, governance, follow up of the Millennium Development Goals, environment, climate change and infrastructure.

The celebration of the maiden edition of the World Statistics Day will be highlighted in Cameroon by a session of the National Statistics Council and an awareness campaign throughout the national territory that will last November 18 when Cameroon will also celebrate the 20^th edition of the African Statistics Day.