In accordance with the mid-term review concerning
the functioning of the UNESCAP conference structure
adopted through Commission resolution 61/1 on
18 May 2005, the work of the Subcommittee on
Statistics will be subsumed under the Committee
on Poverty Reduction from 2006 onwards. The
subsidiary structure of the Commission continues
to consist of three thematic committees: Poverty
Reduction, Managing Globalization, and Addressing
Emerging Social Issues. Under the revised structure,
the Committee on Poverty Reduction includes
a segment on Poverty Reduction Practices and
one on Statistics.
The regional commissions
are multi-disciplinary in character and draw
their strength not only from their orientation
towards the needs of the region that they
serve but also their specialization in a number
of subject areas. UNESCAP as an organization
maintains very strong and regular contacts
with members and associate members at both
the policy- making and technical levels. For
the field of statistics in the Asia-Pacific
region, the Committee on Statistics
- as a subsidiary body of the ESCAP Commission
- was the only intergovernmental organization
covering this vast region. This function was
taken over by the Subcommittee on Statistics;
however, the work of the Subcommittee will
be subsumed under the Committee on Poverty
Reduction from 2006 onwards. At the same time
the secretariat maintains close contacts with
the national statistical offices. These and
other factors keep the Commission abreast
of the statistical needs of its members and
associate members, and better equip it in
formulating and implementing relevant and
useful programmes. While proximity to the
countries is a definite advantage in developing
geographical specialization - something difficult
to achieve by entities outside the region
- the marked heterogeneity among the countries
of the UNESCAP region calls for special skills,
localized knowledge and competence for adopting,
whenever required, a case-by-case approach.
UNESCAP plays an important
role in improving national statistical capabilities
of the countries of the Asia-Pacific region
through a variety of means and by functioning
as a conduit between the national and global
statistical systems. It promotes the exchange
of technical information and country experiences,
significantly contributes to skills development,
and facilitates the evolution of regional
norms and standards, the incorporation of
regional concerns into global standards, and
the promotion of those international standards.
The ESCAP Committee
on Statistics had a remarkable history of
over 50 years as a regional conference. It
had begun as the Regional Conference of Statisticians
in 1951, changed its name to the Conference
of Asian Statisticians in 1957, and was renamed
the Committee on Statistics in 1974 when the
Commission changed its name from ECAFE to
ESCAP, formally incorporating social aspects
of development as well as the Pacific subregion.
At the occasion of the latest restructuring
in the UNESCAP Commission in 2002 the Committee
ceased to exist. Although the Subcommittee
on Statistics held a successful first session
in February 2004, the latest review of the
conference structure removed the subcommittee
level from the subsidiary structure of the
Commission. The Subcommittee had however endorsed
the need to maintain, outside the formal conference
structure, an apex forum of official statisticians
in the region, and the first session of the
Forum for Asia/Pacific
Statisticians (APEX 1) was held in February
2005.
The sessions of the
UNESCAP Commission, of the former Committee
on Statistics and Subcommittee on Statistics,
as well as of the Forum for Asia/Pacific Statisticians,
provide opportunities to review and assess
national statistical activities, identify
common concerns and issues, develop regional
approaches to address new challenges and strengthen
coordination with intergovernmental and non-governmental
organizations.
Following observations
by the Statistical Commission at its twenty-seventh
session that the role of the regional statistical
conferences and statistics divisions was vital,
the Committee on Statistics paid particular
attention to strengthening its role and functioning
while reviewing and revising its terms of
reference in 1994. The Committee has also
adopted a new approach whereby its elected
officials would continue to serve as a bureau
until the next election of officials. These
arrangements entailed increased recognition
by the members and associate members of UNESCAP
of the ownership of the statistical activities
of the Commission and ensured a continuity
of leadership and guidance by the Bureau between
the Committee sessions. In agreeing to act
as the focus of regional statistical development,
the Committee had also started to develop
stronger tools for coordinating various aspects
of statistical activities in the region.
The Working Group of
Statistical Experts, which had been meeting
in the years when the Committee session was
not held, had also emerged as a useful and
strong forum. Its tenth session in November
1997 was attended by a record 25 members and
associate members. Delegations almost invariably
came from their capitals. Similarly, the Committee
on Statistics usually attracted a strong and
high-level participation from the capitals,
generally to a greater extent than other subsidiary
bodies of ESCAP. The great interest in the
statistical activities of UNESCAP by its members
and associate members is also demonstrated
in the attendance at technical meetings. Since
these meetings are almost always organized
under extrabudgetary projects, the cost of
participation for one country nominee is normally
borne by ESCAP. However, many developing countries
send multiple participants utilizing sources
of funding available to the governments. The
secretariat views this as a strong indication
of the usefulness of its technical meetings.
The secretariat promotes
exchange of experience through meetings, advisory
services, publications and dissemination of
technical information, and helps to enhance
national capacities through human resources
development by organizing training courses
and workshops - mainly through its training
arm the Statistical
Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP).
SIAP, in fact, has its origins in actions
taken by the Conference of Asian Statisticians
in the 1960s, during an era of institution-building
which also saw ECAFE spawn the Asian Development
Bank. The mix of technical cooperation modalities
exert their impact synergistically. The technical
meetings, regional training courses and workshops,
and methodological publications help in the
process of exchange of information on issues
and topics of common concerns. Often activities
are also organized on subregional basis to
attain a sharper focus. On the other hand
the UNESCAP advisory services and country
courses organized by SIAP provides the ability
to concentrate on issues relevant to the country
concerned. The strength of this approach lies
in the sound linkages among various modalities
and the ability of UNESCAP to secure cooperation
from international organizations and countries.
For example, UNESCAP was able to participate
in the lengthy global process of the revision
of the System of National Accounts (SNA) and
provide inputs on behalf of the Asia-Pacific
region. It has subsequently organized regional
and subregional workshops to assist developing
countries in the implementation of the 1993
SNA. At the same time, advisory services were
provided to individual countries on the development
and improvement of national accounts, while
country courses can also be organized on the
1993 SNA on request by SIAP. It is this multi-pronged
approach which makes it possible for UNESCAP
to pool scarce resources and achieve concrete
results.
