The Federal Government has established an Inter-Ministerial Committee to set standard for harmonisation and evaluation of data collection in the country.
The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, on Monday in Abuja, said the Committee would be chaired by the Statistician-General of the Federation, Dr Yemi Kale.
Adeosun said that the inter-ministerial committee would serve as the clearing house and focal authority for Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government for data collection, authentication and publication.
“The committee is expected to regularly provide guidance to all MDAs and other stakeholders engaged in data collection, analysis and publication for policy formulation, implementation and monitoring.
“The establishment of the Inter-Ministerial Committee has become imperative to develop the production of national statistics and avoid data production duplication,” she said.
According to Adeosun, the inter-ministerial committee is also expected to submit half-yearly reports to the Minister of Finance for necessary briefing of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Members of the Committee include: the Accountant-General of the Federation, Alhaji Idris Ahmed, Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Ms Patience Oniha and Director-General of Budget Office of the Federation, Mr Ben Akabueze.
Other representatives are drawn from the Federal Ministries of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, Labour and Productivity, Education, and Communication Technology.
Other members of the Committee are: representatives of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Department of Petroleum Resources and Federal Inland Revenue Service.
Similarly, Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigerian Customs Service, National Population Commission, Nigerian Police, and Nigerian Governors Forum are also expected to have representatives. (NAN)
