“In God we trust, all others must bring data.” --William Edwards Deming
NSOs and data users
. It shows that the existence of linkages between an NSO and data users outside of government is important to develop statistical capacity in the long term. These users will be the ones who will protest when a particular statistic is not published in time, who will grumble when a particular survey is not funded, and who will complain when a time series is interrupted.
The demand for data is also driven by outside forces such as public debate, as in the case of migration—a topic that has been at the center of the public agenda in recent years fueled by migration to developed countries, and between developing countries. The need to quantify the numbers has come from users within and outside the government. As migration cross-cuts several policy topics, within governments there is demand between ministries and NSOs for more data sharing and data harmonization, in part, to inform the public discourse on how they are managing migration, including harnessing its benefits and addressing its challenges.
Challenges & Opportunities for NSOs
The existence of multiple data sources on migration presents another test for the NSO, since it has the responsibility of coordinating and regulating other data producers within the National Statistical System (NSS) and integrating data from multiple official sources (i.e. border and airport information, asylum applications, etc.). Another challenge to the NSO comes from the commotion generated by alternative (non-official) sources of data which in the eyes of users can replace official data.
The IDB study explains how NSOs need to transform these disruptions into opportunities: converting the increase in demand into more resources for data collection, changing the perception of alternative data sources from a substitute to a complement of official statistics, and channeling the increased interest in official data production into changes in their regulatory framework that facilitate coordination of the NSS, and interaction with non-official data producers.
What NSOs want are users that care about the issues behind the data: users beyond government agencies, users that could also be data producers, and users that are willing to stand side to side with the NSO in good and in bad times.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout the blog do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IOM concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning its frontiers and boundaries.
- 1The work is based on 10 case studies in: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru.