Abstract

Statistical illiteracy remains high in Africa and worse in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), which negatively affects decision-making, policy formulation, and sustainable development. Building statistical skills remains central for sustainable development agenda. The United Nations sustainable development goals agenda priorizes quality, accessible, timely, and reliable data ensuring no one is left behind. Despite remarkable progress made in statistical development in Africa, skills gap in production, coordination, and use of data are still enormous (World Bank). In Africa, while many government and institutional policies and vision statements demonstrate the need to build capacity for statistics producers, providers, and users to collect, analyse, interpret and effectively use statistical information many institutions are yet to operationalise robust statistical capacity building programs for their staff. Additionally, most training opportunities in statistics tend to be theoretical, characterised by lack of strategic focus or intended theory of change at institutional level. Hence producing half backed producers, managers and users of statistical information. These skills gaps continue to perpetuate misinterpretation of data, Ineffective decision making, lack of evidence-based practices, inaccurate policy formulation, distrust in data and science, missed opportunities for innovation, financial losses, inefficient resource allocation, biased analysis and underutilization of data and tools(World Bank). Against this background, the panelists shall objectively discuss a) vertical and horizontal depth of statistical illiteracy within data value chain among key sectors in Africa; b) Relevancy on public-private partnerships in building robust statistical systems for monitoring UN SDGs in SSA; and c) how to address statistical skills gap with innovations for effective knowledge transfer taking advantage of the ageing workforce in statistical systems aiming at agenda 2063.