SESRIC - Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries
SESRIC Participated in the 17th Session of the ESCWA Statistical Committee
Date: 08-10 September 2026
Venue: Al Jabal Al Akhdar - Oman

SESRIC participated in the 17th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) Statistical Committee, hosted by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) of Oman in Al Jabal Al Akhdar, Sultanate of Oman, on 8–10 September 2026.

The session was attended by representatives of the National Statistical Offices (NSOs) of ESCWA member countries, as well as of regional and international organisations. The agenda items of the 17th Session of the ESCWA Statistical Committee covered the following:

  • Statistical work in the Arab region: towards building modern and sustainable national statistical systems
  • Statistics in times of crisis
  • Coordinating statistical capacity-building activities for national statistical offices

During the round-table discussion on “Coordinating Statistical Capacity-Building Activities for National Statistical Offices”, Mr. Seyid Tahir MAHMUD, Senior Statistics Officer at SESRIC, delivered a presentation entitled “Coordinating Statistical Capacity Development for National Statistical Offices: The Experience of SESRIC”.

The presentation outlined SESRIC’s statistical capacity-development activities delivered under its Statistical Capacity Building (StatCaB) Programme, including training courses, technical missions, study visits, workshops and webinars, delivered through South-South and triangular cooperation. It also highlighted the Centre’s ongoing and prospective collaboration with national statistical offices and regional and international organisations in implementing statistical programmes aligned with regional priorities and the global statistical agenda.

The OIC Statistical Commission (OIC-StatCom) was highlighted as the high-level statistical cooperation platform among the national statistical offices of OIC member countries. Reference was made to the OIC-StatCom Strategic Vision 2030 and its Programme of Action for 2026–2030, adopted at the 14th Session of the OIC-StatCom, which provide a guiding framework for coordinated statistical cooperation and capacity development across the OIC region.

The presentation concluded with proposals for stronger regional coordination, including an annual exchange of capacity-development plans, a shared regional activities calendar, a common needs assessment taxonomy, mutual use of expert rosters, and reporting of jointly organised activities to both the ESCWA Statistical Committee and the OIC-StatCom.

The 17th Session of the Statistical Committee provided a platform for member countries to follow up on progress in statistical activities undertaken by national statistical offices and the ESCWA secretariat since the previous session, which was held in Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain, on 22–23 October 2024. Participants also discussed means to modernise statistical systems and enhance their resilience in times of crisis. Representatives of member countries also shared success stories on leveraging technology and artificial intelligence for statistical work, and on modernising national accounts.

The session also offered an opportunity for SESRIC to hold bilateral discussions with the OIC member countries participating in the event, as well as with regional and international organisations, including the Arab Institute for Training and Research in Statistics (AITRS), ESCWA, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), regarding potential joint efforts in statistical capacity-building activities.

The Statistical Committee was established under ESCWA resolution 179 (XVI), of 2 September 1992, which was adopted by the Economic and Social Council resolution 1993/2 of 2 February 1993. Its objective is to follow up the progress of member countries in developing their statistical systems, and to provide technical advice, propose training programmes and organise workshops and seminars to strengthen their statistical capacity. It also assists member countries in the standardisation of national statistics for more comparability at the regional and international levels, and supports them in coordinating statistical data and information with the UN Statistical Commission and with other member countries, particularly in surveys and censuses. The Statistical Committee holds its session once every two years.

For more information about the 17th Session of the ESCWA Statistical Committee, please visit: https://www.unescwa.org/events/statistical-committee-17th-session

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