Ekiti Commissioner Emphasises Importance Of Data

Most developing countries’ Failures in public socio-economic service delivery and policies have been blamed on unreliable statistics and a lack of authentic data.

The Ekiti State Commissioner for Budget, Economic Planning and Performance Management, Mr Niyi Adebayo, who stated this, said poor and unreliable statistics are not in any way helping governments in their planning, programmes and policies.

He also expressed worry over how poor funding, a lack of skilled workforce, politicisation, and data manipulation, among other factors, are negatively impacting the quality of vital statistics across the country.

Adebayo, who spoke at the second quarter consultative committee meeting on statistics of the Bureau of Statistics in Ado Ekiti, said the identified factors and others have resulted in social challenges that have denied the country the enormous benefits of vital registration.

The Commissioner, who stated that government and citizens must be deliberate in progressively mitigating the influence of the various factors, stressed the need for public education, enlightenment, and partnership with cultural and religious organisations to address the situation.

He called for regular and accurate updates and the capture of the record of births, deaths, and other elements of vital registration to turn the situation around.

“It is high time all critical stakeholders, especially government agencies, achieve marked improvements in their respective areas of responsibilities both in the way they are organised and in the quality of their work as outputs.”

Earlier, the acting Ekiti State Statistician General, Mrs. Dolapo Ojo, commended the state Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, for his support for statistics production in the state.