Statistical literacy

The goals and targets of the Millennium Development Goals and the growing attention to measuring results of poverty reduction strategies and national development plans have increased the need for good quality data. Statistics on MDGs, poverty and human development have improved considerably in recent years – expanding in coverage, improving in quality and timeliness. As a result, more data can now be analyzed and displayed in a disaggregated manner by geographical location, by gender and by socio-economic status.

While international organizations have provided strong support for data production, little attention has been paid to the use and understanding of data by policy makers and the public; the challenge is now shifting from data collection to managing and using the growing amount of data and information for public and policy advocacy.

To ensure that data is used to inform policy decisions and bring about better development results, both users and producers of data need to work together. The management and accessibility of data collected through administrative reporting systems, surveys and censuses needs to be improved. Data must be tailored to the needs of policy makers and the wider public. It needs to be widely understood and used by governments and legislators in policy making and planning, and by civil society and the public to advocate for policies.

UNDP works to improve statistical literacy among users of data on poverty, the MDGs and human development. The organization develops the capacity of government, civil society and media by producing courses on statistical literacy and organizing training workshops.