Welcome to the site of the future electronic Caribbean Institute for Statistical Training and Research (e-CISTAR)!
WHAT IS THE e-CISTAR?
The e-CISTAR is an electronic platform for Statistical Training and Research in the Caribbean. The site is still under construction but once it is fully functional, some of the key functions would be:
- To provide access to training of staff of the Regional Statistical System (RSS) of CARICOM including the National Statistical Systems (NSS) in Member States/Associate Members and other CARICOM agencies with statistical units;
- To enhance the availability of statistical resources and the sharing of knowledge to support the production and dissemination of statistics in the RSS;
- To facilitate networking on statistical issues and concerns, the sharing of best practices across the RSS and the facilitation of exchange visits and attachments linked to Centres of Excellence in NSOs/NSS;
- To provide access to and to support the conduct of applied research and analysis as a support service required to be conducted by countries to enable the adoption of regional and international work programmes, recommendations and related statistical analysis and research (also to enable training in data analysis).
It is expected that these four (4) key objectives would lead to sustained statistical capacity-building in the CARICOM Region.
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HOW IS IT GOING TO BE DEVELOPED?
The e-CISTAR will be developed in phases which will take into consideration the work that has already commenced to modernise the web site of the CARICOM Regional Statistics Programme (RSP) and preliminary work on the transformation of its online Help Desk to an online Knowledge Base (KB). The development of the e-CISTAR will involve substantive work both in terms of the production of content, issues pertaining to the certification of regional online training courses and the actual design of the platform. The development of the elements of the e-CISTAR will be supported by our International Development Partners (IDPs).
Specifically, the activities related to statistical training will require the inputs of universities of the region, particularly as it may relate to the development of courses and certification. It is intended to undertake a series of consultative meetings with key stakeholders including the universities to inform on these areas.
WHY THE NEED FOR THE e-CISTAR?
The need for statistics has been recognised by the Heads of Government of CARICOM, when in 2016, at the Thirty-Seventh Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government (HGC), the Action Plan for Statistics in the Caribbean was endorsed, which called for the strengthening of the National Statistical Systems (NSS) across the Region. The Action Plan took into consideration the increased demand for statistics in the context of indicators to monitor the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the need for continuous training of statistical personnel. Further, the Thirty-Eighth Meeting of the HGC endorsed the preparation of a Regional Strategy for the Development of Statistics (RSDS) as an overarching strategic framework to facilitate the transformation and modernisation of the Regional Statistical System (RSS) of CARICOM. The discussions on the RSDS also point to the need for training and sustainable capacity-building as a vital factor in enabling the production and dissemination of high quality statistics on the Community on a sustainable basis, among other drivers such as the 2030 Agenda, gender mainstreaming and information technology (IT) infrastructure.
The genesis of the e-CISTAR lies in the past efforts of the Standing Committee of Caribbean Statisticians (SCCS) to establish a physical Caribbean Institute for Statistical Training and Research (CISTAR), in recognition of the needs for training of statisticians in the Region. More recently, at a meeting on the Caribbean Conference on the Transformative Agenda for Official Statistics convened by the CARICOM Secretariat and the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) in Barbados during September 2016, the e-CISTAR emerged as a key recommendation under the theme Capacity-Building. It was thought that given the advances in IT, the opportunity to develop an e-CISTAR could now be pursued in a form that could eliminate/minimise the past challenges relative to any long-term financial implications of a physical training institute.
WHAT CONTENT WILL BE AVAILABLE INITIALLY?
The current site will undergo continuous updates and design changes as the e-CISTAR is developed. However, some of the initial work to be undertaken include:
- Incorporation into the Knowledge Base (KB) component of the e-CISTAR, of the existing manuals, guidelines and other reference documents produced through various projects executed by the CARICOM Secretariat through funding support by IDPs;
- Inclusion of links in the KB to other guidelines and resources, including those to online courses available under the current Help Desk;
- Establishment of a Questions and Answers (Q&A) and frequently asked questions (FAQs) section, as a sub-component of the KB;
- Incorporation of a Discussion Forum and a blog as sub-components of the e-CISTAR.
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS/ FUTURE ACTIVITIES?
In moving forward towards full operationality, some of the next steps would include:
- Determining the vision for the learning platform inclusive of the target audience, delivery options, features and functions, content;
- Consultations with the universities in the Region and other tertiary institutions, the NSOs, Education ministries and other stakeholders specifically in relation to the development of courses and certification;
- Development of new content for the KB;
- Development and implementation of a communications strategy for the continued visibility of the e-CISTAR;
- Definition and execution of a continuous maintenance strategy.
