How Government Statistics Make a Difference

• Activity Number: 153
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Monday, August 2, 2010 : 10:30 AM to 12:20 PM
• Sponsor: Section on Government Statistics
• Author(s): Keith Hall*+ and Munir Sheikh*+ and Jil Matheson*+ and Brian Pink*+ and Cynthia Clark*+
• Companies: Bureau of Labor Statistics and Statistics Canada and UK Statistics Authority and Australian Bureau of Statistics and National Agricultural Statistics Service
• Keywords: role of statisticians ; carreer in statistics ; statistical education ; policy making ; data dissemination

Abstract

Governments put a good amount of resources into producing statistics about the societies under their responsibility. A proportion of the statistics produced are widely disseminated in the media, but others generate little interest from reporters.

One can question the role of government statistics and the value of the profession (government statisticians) who put them together. Questions that arise may include the following: Does it really matter that we have been able to measure the various phenomena that affect our society? Is it a government responsibility to do so, or should it be left to the private sector, to associations and the like? Why should a student enroll into a statistics degree and consider governments as an employer of choice?

These questions and others will be adressed by a panel made of five heads of statistical organizations.