THE STATISTICAL Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), in line with the timetable of one of its latest surveys, the Household Expenditure Survey, has embarked on a drive to transform the low-keyed public image of the organisation.
In fact, in a recent interview, Sonia Jackson, director-general of the institute, described the organisation as hardly having a recognisable public image at present, excepting for being the provider of information on some matters of national significance. That, she said, has to change and the sooner the better.
"STATIN right now hardly has what I would call a face. The public doesn't seem to know us. Some people know about our work, others don't know, so we have got to change that image. We need to let people know what we do and we need to do that both outside and inside of our network," said the director-general.
THE THEME
In pointing to the theme of the new drive, 'Statistics; Everybody's Business', she said the focus of the organisation was to highlight how critical the information it provided was to both national and personal life. She said for Jamaica and Jamaicans to survive and compete in an increasingly global world, there had to be an acceptable basis of comparison between "ourselves and the wider world", which she said was achieved from examinations of individuals at home, at work and businesses at work, from which enough information was gathered to provide both structured and relevant comparative information.
"We produce the Consumer Price Index (CPI) monthly, we produce data on the economic performance of the nation, that is, the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) that is produced quarterly; we also provide information on production, the labour force and on unemployment on a regular basis. We also conduct the population census, which we last did in 2001 and got commendations for delivering the results in a reasonable time," outlined Ms. Jackson.
THERE IS MORE
In noting the importance of the Household Expenditure Survey, which is now ongoing, she said it was important to "get people to begin to understand that there is more to the institute than just taking information from the people, as we are receiving and giving back and also giving to the rest of the world."
Ms. Jackson said many top level local institutions, along with the trade unions, rely
heavily on the information coming out of STATIN. She also said the institute enjoyed national and international repute for its
general standard of work. That, she said, was a clear indication that the institute was "much more than just figures and numbers".
STATIN comprises a Corp-orate Area headquarters and a number of field offices, with about 120 field officers serving across the country. These persons visit homes and businesses to secure information which is cross-checked and carefully processed to provide accurate statistics for public and private use. In other instances, she pointed out, the institute is able to tap information provided on a centralised basis for sector groupings, like in the bauxite sector, from the Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI).
The director-general said after the last census, due to the high level of publicity that surrounded the exercise, "people began to notice us a little more, but we definitely need to build on that."
