Remarks at the Launch of the Joint Programme for Data and Statistics

The Rt. Hon. First Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uganda, 

The State Minister for Finance, Planning and Economic Development, 

Your Excellencies, Ambassadors and Heads of Missions,

The Chairperson Board of Directors, Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 

Heads of Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies

Colleagues from the UN system,

Representatives of the Civil Society,

Representatives of the Private Sector,

Representatives of the Academia,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen. 

It is my pleasure to welcome you all to this momentous event, the launch of the Joint Programme for Data and Statistics, on behalf of my colleagues in the United Nations system. 

This event has come at a point when global progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is not so exciting, with only 12 percent of the SDG indicators on track at the mid-point of the 2030 Agenda. Here at home, the recent review of the Third National Development Plan (NDPIII), which is the framework through which SDGs are implemented, found that only 17 percent of its targets had been achieved mid-way its implementation. The multifaceted shocks experienced in the recent years have contributed significantly to this slow progress in our development journey but have also reawakened the calls to be more effective in the way we target our resource allocation, predict crises, manage risks and vulnerabilities, and monitor progress. 

During the Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit held late last year, leaders from different parts of the world reiterated the need to ensure access to timely and high-quality, disaggregated data to facilitate monitoring and review for more efficient and effective policy and planning.

The Joint Programme that we are launching today is a USD 42 million collaborative initiative between the Government of Uganda and 12 members of the United Nations family. It is motivated by our belief that data and statistics can be an instrument for better decision making and unlocking transformative opportunities for all members of society. I wish to extend my appreciation to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) for their technical guidance and collaboration with the UN during this process and the strong partnership that they have built with the United Nations system over the years. It is through this leadership that the Joint Programme design followed a highly consultative process contributed to by Government, Development Partners, Civil Society, Academia, and Private Sector. It was also informed by the findings of a joint UN/UBOS review of the status of SDGs related of data and statistics in Uganda. This study found that there has been significant improvement in the quantity and quality of data and statistics. There has also been a drastic change in the ecosystem, resulting from the emergence of new actors and technological approaches. Yet, there remain gaps in the enabling legal and policy environment, limited capacity for data production, slow adoption of advanced technology in the data value chain and inadequate use of data for decision-making.  These and other challenges dictate that the traditional methods must be reviewed to align to the prevailing circumstances. 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

This Joint Programme should not be construed as being entirely a new thing, but simply a change in the approach to further consolidate our support to the National Statistical System amidst an increasingly difficult financing landscape. This approach was inspired by the need to build synergies among actors, leverage the power of collaboration and pooled funding to reduce the transaction costs of financing data and statistics, cut down on potential duplication of efforts and bring competition for development partner support to its minimum. 

In this spirit, I wish to conclude by calling upon more development partner organisations to rally behind us to contribute the required funding for the implementation of this innovative initiative. My office and UBOS will be readily available to further engage with you to identify and agree on potential areas of support within the joint programme results and resources framework. 

Thank you for being part of this launch!