World Statistics Day

World Statistics Day is observed On 20 October every 5 years since 2010 when it was celebrated for the first time, as decided in the UN General Assembly resolution 64/267.

It was deemed an overwhelming success, with activities organized in more than 130 Member States and by at least 40 international and regional organizations and entities.

The General Assembly initiated World Statistics Day (WSD) in order to shed light on the many achievements of national and international statistical systems, to raise public awareness and build trust in official statistics, and to promote the work of statisticians throughout the world.

The day also serves to highlight the importance of reliable and timely data for informed policy decisions. Official statistics help decision makers develop informed policies that impact millions of people. It makes it possible to better address and overcome challenges such as education, health, climate change, business affairs and social needs. Improved data sources, sound statistical methods, new technologies and strengthened statistical systems enable better decisions that eventually result in better lives for all of us. Something worth celebrating.

The eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon said "We need to ensure that everyone is counted, especially the most poor and vulnerable. No child’s birth shall remain unregistered. No incidence of disease, no matter how remote the location, shall remain unrecorded. We need local statistics to ensure that every child has access to education and we need global statistics to monitor the overall effects of climate change."

World Statistics Day is the opportunity for the global statistical community to showcase their achievements and their ongoing work to help this vision come true.

A variety of events are held worldwide to mark the occasion: competitions, trainings, workshops, seminars, outreach activities for high school students to learn about the field of statistics and career opportunities in statistics from the leading statistical agencies. The theme is selected for every World Statistics Day.

Source: un.org