Statistics make planning easier

Editorial

Nearly every developed, and progressive, country has some form of accountability and organisation with regards to the information it has on its citizens.
It is common knowledge that for any successful country to navigate through the challenges and drawbacks of economic and social growth, it is essential for those in power to have at their disposal a set of reliable figures on which to refer to when choosing the course the nation should take for benefit of all its citizens.
That is one vital aspect of development missing, up-to-date statistics and data.
There are no reliable statistics and data available in the country.
The tools to collect remains a big weakness in PNG.
This is because there is no system in place to collect accurate information, which is very vital for planning.
Trade data collection is vital because the country needs to know exactly what type of goods and the volumes there are, of products, being traded and with which countries.
Statistics, data and trends should not just chart the changes that occur over a certain period of time, but should be continually updated and made relevant for the times.
Take for example population growth, infant mortality rates, rural-to-urban drift, numbers of voting population, and what the demographics are for that population. This information is crucial for nearly every Government department in order for it to forecast change and deal with it in an efficient manner.
It will ensure long-term growth or in the worst case scenario, control and inhibit negative impacts of the said change.
To this end the National Planning and Monitoring Ministry is looking at becoming a reservoir of data that State and people can rely on for accurate, comprehensive and accessible information on a range of areas.
The need for reliable information in this country has always been a problem.
The last census was in 2011 but was mired in technical and logistical problems, that one can barely accept the information gathered without thinking it is not a true indication of the population.
The introduction of the NID system is in large part a way to minimise the stress put on the State to carry out a nationwide survey every five or so years.
The NID programme is aimed at cutting down on that pressure by providing State agencies a flexible system that is practically self-sustaining and gives accurate information at the push of a button.
Bringing the country under one system will be important, as around 80 per cent of the land is made up rural communities and villages.
They will feel compelled to register in order to participate and benefit from modern society.
We agree with Prime Minister Peter O’Neill that PNG has been operating in the dark for quite some time.
Dark – meaning that we are just guessing the population and building infrastructure like road, schools, and health centres in areas that have less population while there are no infrastructure in areas that have large populations.
We have to start right with the census data so we can make the right decision in planning for our future generations.