Agreement Signed to Collaborate in the Development of Official Statistics

With the aim of promoting collaborative policies for the development of projects in statistics, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and Colombia's National Statistics Department (Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística, DANE) today signed a Framework Agreement for Collaboration to foster exchange of technical support and greater efficiency in conducting their respective objectives.

The agreement was signed at ECLAC headquarters by the Executive Secretary of this regional UN commission, José Luís Machinea, and DANE Director Ernesto Rojas Morales. Both institutions seek to encourage the development of new projects in the field of statistics, their use in public policies, institutional strengthening of Colombia's national statistics systems and their human resources, and the dissemination of statistical findings and technical cooperation.

With this agreement, both institutions agree to work together in technical support and cooperation activities to strengthen Colombia's institutional systems and the development of its official statistics, and to collaborate in cooperation projects for the development of official statistics as a public resource in Latin America and the Caribbean, especially in the areas of household surveys, methodologies for the measurement of poverty, the Millennium Development Goals, and social cohesion and vulnerability.

The agreement also includes education and training in statistics for countries of the Andean Community of Nations, and joint work with ECLAC in the statistical activities that require information, data and research related to Colombia.

The principal mission of Colombia's national statistics bureau is to guarantee the production, availability and quality of strategic statistical information and a stronger national information system for the country's economic and social development. To this end, DANE designs and implements the statistical operations required for planning and decision-making by the government, and provides the necessary technical and operational infrastructure.

ECLAC is one of five regional commissions created by the United Nations as subsidiary bodies of its Economic and Social Council, and was founded for the purpose of contributing to the economic and social development of Latin America and the Caribbean. Among its objectives are the comprehensive analysis of development processes, the development of proposals for the elaboration, follow-up and evaluation of public policies, technical cooperation in areas of economic and social development, and promotion of regional and international cooperation and coordination.