The Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS) is undertaking a study tour to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) as part of efforts to enhance its statistical capacity.

The statistician-general of the federation, Adeyemi Adeniran, said the five-day tour was aimed at sharing knowledge on how to move the statistical system forward in both countries and Africa.

According to Mr Adeniran, the GBoS team will learn how the NBS adopts international best practices in the production of its data.

He added that the GBoS would also learn new ways of producing data and the application of technology and innovation in data production.

“The GBoS have come to learn from us in Nigeria how we produce our National Agriculture Sample Census and the sample survey that followed it.

“They also want to learn how we are able to produce labour force statistics on a quarterly basis for many years without failing.

“As you recall, we revised our methodology of computing labour force and labour market statistics in recent times in conformity with ILO standards that all countries are using,” said the statistician-general.

Mr Adeniran said Nigeria had the best statistical system in Africa, which was why the GBoS and other West African countries came for study tours.

He said the NBS had been able to achieve this feat because of the support the bureau received from the federal government through the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning.

Mr Adeniran said the federal government had given the bureau independence to apply sound methodology to data production and to engage stakeholders in their data production process.

“If we were not the leading statistics office in Africa, the GBoS would not have come here, and we have come of age in terms of standards, best practices, and the number of data we produce,” he said.

Mr Adeniran assured the GBoS team that there would be knowledge sharing from the different sessions, and they would get the best out of their visit to the NBS.

In his remarks, the statistician-general of the GBoS, Nyakaasi Sanyang, commended Mr Adeniran for his commitment to the development of statistics in the region while encouraging him to keep the momentum.

Mr Sanyang said the tour would allow the GBoS to learn best practices, innovative methodologies and effective data production techniques from the NBS.

He added that the tour would also provide knowledge sharing and foster regional collaboration.

“We made consultations with our development partners, the World Bank, and they did the research for us.

“They found out that Nigeria is the best place for us to go and study how the labour force survey and the Agricultural Census Survey are being conducted,” Mr Sanyang said.

He said The Gambia last conducted their agriculture census in 2011, which was purely paper-based.

The tour has the theme “Enhancing Statistical Capacity: A Study Tour on the National Agricultural Sample Census and Labour Force Survey.”

(NAN)