It is indeed my distinct pleasure to welcome you to this pivotal workshop on National Accounts. I am Halim Brizan, Director of Regional Statistics and on behalf of the CARICOM Secretariat and the Regional Statistics Programme, I extend a warm welcome to each of you.
Today we come together with a shared purpose: to culminate our journey of understanding and implementing the System of National Accounts and all its complexities. This workshop, the final one in a series of capacity-building initiatives under the 11th EDF consultancy to reinforce the capacity of the National Statistical Offices (NSOs) of CARICOM Member States to produce key National Accounts Statistics consistent with international standards, represents a significant step towards strengthening our CARICOM Statistical System (CSS) as part of our Regional Strategy for the Development of Statistics (RSDS), while also encouraging greater collaboration among our Member States.
Your participation will solidify these efforts, and thus I am confident that the insights and discussions we will have throughout the sessions will be invaluable and will significantly contribute to our collective success as a Region in improving national accounts estimates, filling critical data gaps and adopting the 2008 System of National Accounts, thereby increasing overall data production in the domain of Economic Statistics.
Joining us today are our National Accounts Experts from the GOPA Luxembourg, Mr. Christian Martin Poveda, Ms. Maureen Blokland and Ms. Danijela Dabetic, who have been instrumental in executing this 11th EDF Consultancy on National Accounts in CARICOM.
The National Accounts project faced significant hurdles during the implementation period due to the simultaneous demands on resources of our National Statistical Offices, particularly with the challenging 2020 round of population and housing censuses. In many cases, it would have been proven difficult to allocate sufficient resources (financial, human and technical) to the activities of this project, as well as other administrative challenges that caused some delays and inefficiencies.
Nevertheless, several adaptive strategies and flexible planning were implemented to tailor the assistance to Member States to ensure they were equipped to manage the demands of the project and benefit from this intervention.
During this workshop, we will hear from representatives of our Member States who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to our discussions and will share key insights and country experiences in compiling the minimum requirement for the system of national accounts, tourism satellite accounts and creative and cultural accounts.
In regions such as CARICOM, collecting data on sustainable development poses several challenges. There is a general lack of reliable, consistent and comprehensive data and the challenge of coordinating and integrating data from diverse sources. The national implementation of the 2008 SNA necessitates a comprehensive understanding of the current capacity of all aspects of the statistical production process to produce national accounts and supporting statistics. In addition, the relevant scope and detail of the national accounts and supporting statistics required to inform policy and decision-making must be determined in consultation and collaboration with all relevant stakeholders in the national statistical system (NSS).
With the support of the Regional Statistics Programme and other key stakeholders, the scope, coverage and data quality of national accounts and other macroeconomic statistics can be enhanced. This collaborative approach will ensure that the national accounts remain robust, comprehensive and aligned with international standards, ultimately supporting better economic decision-making and policy formulation and addressing sustainable development in CARICOM.
Effective collaboration among countries and workshops such as this one can facilitate the sharing of best practices, challenges and solutions, as well as help build the necessary skills and knowledge among national compilers to sustain the production of the MRDS and other data sets that would count in assessing the degree of 2008 SNA implementation. It can also facilitate the standardisation of methodologies and practices and can provide diverse perspectives and resources to improve the comparability and reliability of data in CARICOM and build public trust and cooperation.
As such, we cannot ignore the critical and growing demands for economic statistics that analyse and describe the status of economic activity in our Member States, such as Tourism and Culture as well as the levels of GDP and Government Spending. Satisfying these demands will make our statistical systems more relevant and thus attract greater funding. As a result, NSOs should continue to make available data that may be used to monitor the economy’s overall economic performance and behaviour.
The 2025 SNA is already upon us, and initial planning for its global adoption and implementation is already underway. As the implementation of the 2025 SNA will be a significant undertaking that impacts several key stakeholders, countries are encouraged to consider its implementation as a key strategic priority and ensure that these key stakeholders are aware of it and support it.
In the context of CARICOM, compiling the minimum requirements and using satellite accounts to measure key sectors like culture and tourism can provide a broader and more accurate view of economic development, helping to drive sustainable growth and regional integration. Therefore, countries should continue to invest in the development and implementation of these accounts, leveraging existing data sources such as government and other financial accounts, balance of payments, household budget surveys, visitor surveys and their supply and use tables. Additionally, countries should draw from the expertise available in the region through organisations such as the CARICOM Secretariat, CARTAC, ECLAC and the ECCB to produce the datasets that support policymakers in making informed decisions and comparisons between different sectors and countries and enable them to allocate resources more effectively to foster development.
As we navigate through this workshop, let us remember that our collective experience and collaborative efforts in the CARICOM Region are key to our success. The discussions during this workshop can help inform several adaptive strategies required to advance work in this area of statistics, including enhanced coordination, training and capacity-building, international support and technical cooperation, prioritisation and resource management to ensure the most pressing needs are identified and met.
Thus, your active participation and contribution will result in a productive and insightful session.
Together, let us challenge ourselves to think critically, innovate and collaborate, ensuring that the
work in National Accounts remains relevant and impactful.
I wish you a productive session.
Let us take full advantage of this opportunity and continue to strive to make a tangible impact
in our respective countries.
