Qatar's Planning and Statistics Authority Organizes Workshop On Statistical Communication Strategy

Doha, February 28 (QNA) - The Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA) have organized Tuesday a workshop on the Statistical Communication Strategy, with the participation of experts and specialists from the Authority, Government Communications Office representatives, the Civil Service and Government Development Bureau and coordinators of government agencies producing statistical data. The workshop aims to get acquainted with the context and concepts of the statistical communication strategy and the elements of its success, identifying its objectives and the expected results from achieving it, and its subject areas, in addition to learning about the various strategic plans for statistical communication. The workshop dealt in detail with the statistical communication strategy prepared by PSA, as it is considered a main supporter of the statistical work in the country, implementing the Authority's plan to develop statistics, and building a strong statistical system that serves the country's national development plans and strategies. The Planning and Statistics Authority seeks,via this workshop, to provide efficient and effective statistical communication that meets the needs of beneficiaries with professionalism and high quality, the participation of all members of the country's statistical system in the development of statistical work and upgrading the practices and activities carried out by the entity in various aspects of statistical communication, as well as identifying strengths and weaknesses. On this occasion, PSA President's Assistant Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al Nuaimi said that the world has recently witnessed a remarkable increase in terms of quantity and quality of the request for statistical data and information, due to the remarkable breakthroughs in information and communication technologies, which has accelerated the demand for timely, comprehensive and reliable statistical information. He pointed out that the continuous response to these increasing demands in quantity and quality, especially the statistics required to meet the requirements of drawing up development plans in the country and following up on the progress made to achieve Qatar National Vision 2030, requires that PSA finds a mechanism that enables it to continue developing its work sustainably, and to keep abreast of relevant developments inside and outside the country simultaneously due to the prominent position that Qatar enjoys in the international system at the regional and global levels. Therefore, PSA had to prepare a national strategy for statistical communication, which is the first of its kind at the regional level in the region's countries. He indicated that PSA has adopted international standards in preparing this strategy, mainly: the participation and contribution of key actors in the statistical and information work, including users and producers of statistical data and information, in order to build a real partnership that ensures the adoption of the strategy by stakeholders, leveraging the expertise and experiences, and synergizing efforts to advance this vital sector. He affirmed that this strategy represents a qualitative addition in the framework of the continuous endeavor to develop the statistical system and its working mechanisms in general and that the results of achieving its objectives will be tangible results in the system and its working mechanisms. He noted that interest in communication and statistical communication is not a new issue in the country's statistical system, where the Authority used to carry out many communication activities in this field, some of which are temporary, such as those related to major statistical operations such as the general census of population, housing and establishments, and some of them are continuous, such as the application of the national framework for the quality of official statistics. This strategy comes to enhance and develop these activities due to its importance in raising statistical awareness in society. This is necessary to ensure the success of statistical work, whether in relation to the production of statistical data and information or in relation to their use. The statistical communication strategy is considered an essential support for the statistical work in the country, the implementation of the Planning and Statistics Authority's plan to develop statistics and building a strong statistical system that serves the objectives of the National Development Strategy of the State of Qatar. (QNA)