C A R I B B E A N                    C O M M U N I T Y              S E C R E T A R I A T

 

            TWENTY-EIGHTH MEETING OF                                  RESTRICTED

            THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF

            CARIBBEAN STATISTICIANS                                      SCCS/2003/28/9        

 

            Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands

            3-5 November 2003                                                         29 October 2003

 

 

CARICOM PROGRAMME ON STRENGTHENING CAPACITY IN THE COMPILATION OF SOCIAL/GENDER AND ENVIRONMENT STATISTICS AND INDICATORS IN THE CARICOM REGION: STATUS REPORT - SOCIAL/GENDER COMPONENT

 

 

Attached for the attention of the Meeting is Paper entitled CARICOM Programme on Strengthening Capacity in the Compilation of Social/Gender and Environment Statistics and Indicators in the CARICOM Region: Status Report - Social/Gender Component.

 

 

 

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 CARICOM Programme on Strengthening Capacity in the Compilation of Social/Gender and Environment Statistics and Indicators in the CARICOM Region: Status Report - Social/Gender Component

 

 

1.         Background to the Programme

    

The CARICOM Programme on Strengthening Capacity in the Compilation of Social Gender and Environment Statistics and Indicators in the CARICOM Region was formulated in May 2002 in Roseau, Dominica at the Second Meeting of the Advisory Group which was established to enable the sustainability of the capacity building process beyond the lifetime of the UNSD/CARICOM Project which was focused in these areas of statistics. This Project was implemented between 2000-2002. The Advisory Group comprises Directors of Statistics of selected Member States, and representatives of the United Nations Statistical Division (UNSD) and the CARICOM Secretariat.

 

From the inception of the UNSD/CARICOM Project, it was recognized that in order to sustain and institutionalize the compilation of the identified statistics and indicators within the various Member States, a more focused follow up programme would be necessary. The main objective of the CARICOM Programme is: ‘To institutionalize the production of Social and Gender, and Environment Statistics in the National Statistical Systems in order to inform policy formulation, that can improve the conditions of men and women in the Region'.

 

The Programme is divided into two main components: (i) Social and Gender Statistics and (ii) Environment Statistics, with both components being supported by a dissemination strategy.

 

The programme was formally endorsed by the Twenty-Seventh Meeting of the Standing Committee of Caribbean Statisticians (SCCS) which was held in Grenada in November 2002, and subsequently, an implementation plan for the programme was drafted in December 2002, and underwent its final revision in March 2003

 

2.         Expected Outputs

   

This Programme, inter alia, includes outputs such as the production of social and gender statistics and indicators; more focussed regional workshops; the formation of social indicators committees within the various Member States, which would act to support and guide the production of the social indicators; the conduct of study tours and exchange visits and direct assistance on a one-to-one basis for the more needy Member States.  The activities to be undertaken for the period December 2002 to December 2003, under the Social and Gender Statistics Component are given in Annex I and are summarized as follows:

 

·                    Preparatory Activities such as finalising of a draft implementation plan, circulating the revised list of indicators to experts, identifying and document weaknesses of Member States through undertaking an inventory;

 

·                    Compilation activities- designing formats, documenting of data standards, submitting of formats with accompanying guidelines for compilation of indicators; collection, validation and checking of data;

 

·                    Establishing National Social Indicators Committees;

 

·                    Training in the compilation of Social and Gender Statistics;

 

·                    Preparation of user manuals;

 

·                    Dissemination of indicators;

 

·                    Programme monitoring activities;

 

·                    Programme assessment.

 

3.         Outputs Achieved

 

(i)         Feedback on Revised List of Indicators

 

(a)                A comprehensive list of indicators was drafted by the Advisory Committee at its third Meeting held in Grenada in November 2002. At this Meeting, special consideration was given to the inclusion of the social indicators, which were contained in the indicators of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG);

 

(b)               These indicators were prioritized into Group I and Group II indicators. It was considered more feasible that initial attention be focussed first on those listed in Group I. Later, as the need arises, the Group II indicators will be incorporated into the annual Programme;

 

(c)                In order to refine the list of indicators, feedback was sought from several key regional experts and organisations. Even though all acknowledged receipt of this request, and promised to send their comments, only one person fulfilled this promise.

 

(ii)        Execution of an Inventory of Social Statistics

 

(a)                An inventory of available indicators within Member States was conducted. This inventory collected information about the availability, and if so, the latest year for which the indicators are available. It also gathered information on the periodicity for all indicators identified, as well as the source of the indicators;

 

(b)               The inventory served to identify those Member States with the weakest capabilities and to provide the gaps and deficiencies in the indicators. These weaker Member States and areas will therefore be targeted for improvement at an appropriate time in the near future;

 

(c)                The results of the inventory will also help in guiding the way to prevent duplication and for the programme to be more focused and therefore more efficiently implemented;

 

(d)               The metadata generated from this inventory, together with available metadata in the office, would eventually be converted to a database. This database will be dynamic in the sense that it will be able to be updated as the need arises.

 

(iii).      Establishment of Social Indicators and Millennium Development Goals (SIMDG) Committees in the Member States

 

(a)                Activities relating to the establishment of the proposed Social Indicators and Millennium Development Goals committees [1] in the various Member States were executed which included preparation of a strategy paper, budget and time schedule for these meetings across Member States;

 

(b)               The pilot meeting to establish these SIMDG committees was held in St. Kitts and Nevis. Experiences from this pilot meeting proved extremely useful in improving subsequent meetings in the other Member States; 

 

(c)                 Most of the period April to July 2003, was exceptionally active with one-day meetings in Member States and Associated Member States in order to establish SIMDG committees.  Including in the agenda of these meetings were presentations in the following areas: At these meetings, formal presentations were done on:

 

(i)                  An overview of the CARICOM Programme;

(ii)                Use of indicators in policy and managerial decisions;

(iii)               Terms of reference of the committee;

(iv)              The MDGs;

(v)                Core set of indicators for the Region;

(vi)              Coordination in the compilation of Statistics and indicators;

 

(d)               Participants at these meetings were drawn from among both users and producers of data in the public, NGO and private sector domains.  Member States were encouraged to invite persons from a recommended list comprising approximately twenty (20) organisations. This recommended list is in Annex II to this Report;

(e)                At the various meetings, several new indicators were suggested for inclusion and these were noted for future consideration by the Advisory Committee for consideration.  A list of these suggested indicators has been compiled and is attached to this report as Annex III;

 

(f)                 The average turnout per meeting was approximately twenty (20) persons. The successful outcomes of these meetings are extremely encouraging and should lead to the active functioning of the SIMDG Committees, in improving the quality, timeliness and scope of social/gender statistics, and in providing the core data set on a sustainable basis;

 

(g)                A model case in this regard is the Social Indicators Committee of Belize, the practices of which can be shared with the rest of the Region;

 

(h)                Some Member States are seeking to formalise their committees at the national level through getting Cabinet approval;

 

(i)                  All Member States/Associate Member States, except Haiti, Cayman Islands and Bermuda have now been visited to establish an SIMDG Committee;

 

(j)                 Preparations are now being made to gradually include Haiti to be covered.  Discussions are also to be held during the upcoming SCCS Meeting with Bermuda and the Cayman Islands relative to the inclusion of these countries;

 

(k)               An adequate level of monitoring by the CARICOM Secretariat will be essential in guiding the functioning of these committees in Member States;

 

(l)                  In addition, a successful data dissemination strategy, which will maximise access to the indicators by the public, will be crucial in fostering the long-term sustainability.

 

(iv)       Compilation of Indicators

  

Preparation of formats

 

(a)                The format in which Member States are to report their indicators was completed and submitted to the NSOs and/or the Chairpersons of the SIMDG Committee;

 

(b)               It is anticipated that if the SIMDG functions effectively it would be possible to submit the compiled data by the end of October 2003;

 

(c)                The format is quite comprehensive and seeks to collect the actual levels of the indicators together with an updated metadata;

 

The Organization of Available Metadata and the Collection of Additional

    Metadata

 

(d)               It was realized that a considerable amount of very useful documentation of metadata, existed in the various publications and databases at the CARICOM Secretariat, but needed to be organised in a more user-friendly fashion;

 

(e)                The documentation of these data was therefore rigorously pursued and has now been keyed into one main database. The latter is so organised that as more data are received, they can be easily added, and the database can therefore be expanded. Information from the inventory was also useful in updating the sources of information;

 

(v)        Workshop on Harmonization of Social Statistics in the CARICOM Region

 

(a)                The process of harmonizing the social/gender metadata, was also initiated under the CARICOM Programme with the convening of a three-day workshop in Grenada, from 20-22 August 2003. Eight (8) Member States were invited to this initial workshop, in order to start the process of harmonising concepts, definitions, methodologies etc. used in the area of Social/Gender Statistics. 

 

(b)               Participants were invited from the  National Statistical Offices, recently established SIMDG Committees and regional and international organisations. These participants benefited from a very rich exchange of ideas from the international community, as well as from regional experts. The forum generated very useful recommendations, which will assist in deciding on the immediate next steps. A Report of this Meeting is being finalized;

 

(c)                A main outcome of the Harmonisation Workshop is that the Secretariat is currently working to put together all of the common metadata, and to document those where differences occur. The outputs from these Workshops will enable the Secretariat’s Statistics Section to include on its website a section displaying social statistics metadata for the Region. More importantly, however, it should facilitate greater comparability and interpretation of the statistics and indicators.

 

(d)               A second workshop for the remaining Member States/Associate Member States, not accommodated in the initial workshop is tentatively scheduled for early in 2004. 

 

     

 

4.         Work in progress

 

The following are areas of work-in-progress:

 

(i)                  Monitoring of the compilation of the indicators at the national level and the submission to the Secretariat by the due date;

 

(ii)                Advancing the process of harmonization of the indicators –evaluation of the proceedings of the meeting and assessing and compiling the areas of similarities and differences;

 

(iii)               Monitoring of the status of the SIMDG Committees in Member States;

 

(iv)              Planning for the second meeting on harmonisation of Social Statistics;

 

(v)                Planning of training workshops and technical assistance;

 

(vi)              Planning for the convening of the Fourth Advisory Group Meeting;

 

(vii)             Planning for the start of the component on the Environment.

 

5.         Future Activities

 

The following activities are scheduled for the future:

 

(i)                  Execution of training workshops and technical assistance;

 

(ii)                Assisting Member States in accessing institutionalised training opportunities;

 

(iii)               Continued assistance to Member States with the operations of the SIMDG Committees;

 

(iv)              Completion of the compilation of the metadata;

 

(v)                Convening of the second workshop to harmonise the metadata;

 

(vi)              Convening of the Fourth Advisory Group Meeting;

 

(vii)             Preparation of User Manuals;

 

(viii)           Development of a data dissemination strategy.

6.         Constraints and Threats to the Programme and Adjustments

    

The following are some of the constraints encountered:

 

(i)                  The quantum of work involved in implementing the Programme implied that some of the tentative dates for the execution of activities had to be adjusted. In addition, there were financial constraints which limited the execution of activities. As an example, the Monitoring Meeting of the Advisory Committee scheduled for May and then September was not convened. It is anticipated that the Fourth Advisory Group Meeting will be held early in 2004, at which time the development thrust in the second component on the Environment will have commenced.  Training in the Social Gender statistics is now re-scheduled for 2004;

 

(ii)                A major concern to the success of the Programme is the availability of data from the Year 2000 Round of Population and Housing Census. At most SIMDG Committee Meetings, a considerable part of the discussion focused on the availability of data to produce the core indicators. Much of the discussion tended to focus on the need to capture a considerable amount of data through household surveys. Another recurrent theme in the discussions centered on the fact that many of the indicators can be generated from the database of the Population & Housing Census, if only these data were available. The lack of timeliness of the data from the Censuses is a serious threat to the capacity building efforts of the CARICOM Programme. It is strongly recommended therefore, that we exert immediate efforts to hasten the availability of the data from the 2000 Round of Census;

 

Annex I

Work Plan

 

 

Work Plan (continued)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Annex II

 

Recommended Composition of the SIMDG

 

The Need for the Involvement and Empowerment of all Stakeholders

 

It is recommended that the Social Indicators and Millennium Development Goals Committee comprise representatives of the Social Sector organizations involved in data collection, as well as some representation of the important users of such data. This is crucial for the successful functioning of the committee in producing the key indicators on a timely and regular basis. Also, users and producers of these data represent the major stakeholders, and evidence shows that success can only be guaranteed when these players are fully involved in the entire process.

 

When all stakeholders are involved, they are feel more empowered and full ownership of the product is guaranteed.  When one feels empowered, both the process and the product involved are enhanced. Whereas countries are free to choose their own representatives, experience has shown that members from the following organizations can be quite effective.

 

Organisation                                                              Post

 

Central Statistical Office (co-chair)              Statistician, Social and Demographic

                                                                   Section

 

Min. of Human Resources (co-chair)           Social Planner  Population Unit      

 

Women's Department                                 Director

 

Labour Department                                     Labour Economist

 

Min. of Economic Development                  Social Planner

 

Min. of Education                                       Head, Planning Unit

 

Min. of Health                                            Head, Planning Unit

 

Medical Statistical Office                            Head

 

Maternal and Child Health Unit                   Head

 

Public Health Bureau                                  Head

 

Min. of Housing                                          Head, Planning Unit

 

Min. of Finance                                          Economist

 

Vital Statistics                                             Deputy Registrar of Vital Events

 

The Local University                                   Head of Sociology or Economics

                                                                  Department

 

UNICEF                                                     Director

 

Social Investment Fund                                Executive Director

 

Nat. Committee for Families and                  Executive Secretary

Children

 

Family Planning Association                         Executive Director

 

Social Security Board                                  Head, Research and Statistics Section

 

UNDP                                                        Planner

 

PAHO                                                        Epidemiologist

 

 

 

Annex III

 

 

 

Additional List of Social/Gender Indicators

 

The following indicators were recommended for inclusion as part of the indicator set to be collected in the CARICOM Programme:

 

Population

 

Population by Ethnic Group

Population by Religious Group

Migration - Arrivals and Departures

Number of "belongers" and "foreigners"

Number of "elderly" population

Number of "illegals" and by type of housing

Population by single year

Instead of Population 0 - 4 years, use Population under 1 year and 1 - 4 years

Number of persons who receive permanent residence in other countries

Access to adequate "housing"

Number of bedrooms per household

Number of persons who receive citizenship in other countries

Number of persons who receive work permits in other countries

The "disabled" by age should cut across all sections

 

Families and Households

 

Total Fertility Rate by socio-economic status

 

Work

 

Ownership of Businesses by "belongers" and by "foreigners"

Types of businesses

Wages paid to employees

Types of Business loans

Indicator for child labour

Employed population by union status

Number employed in the informal sector

Wages paid in the informal sector

 

Economy

 

Access to land for Agricultural purposes

Indicator for unpaid work

Median monthly incomes by occupational and industrial groups

Percentage of government budget expended (both recurrent and capital) on health and education services

Percent of government budget expended on gender matters

Number of persons underemployed

Number of persons receiving pensions and maternity benefits

"Jobs created" by industry

 

Education

 

Ratio of Students to trained and untrained teachers

Number enrolled at the pre-school level

Tertiary education by areas of study

Number of managers by level of Education (Primary and Secondary)

Number who complete vocational levels by fields

"Dropouts" at Primary and Secondary levels

Include ages 12 - 14 in net enrolment rate at Secondary level

Gross enrolment rate at the tertiary level

Number of teachers by qualifications

At least one (1) indicator should be included on numeracy

School enrolment by disability

 

Health

 

Hospital beds per 1,000 population

Number of cases referred for overseas treatment

Hospitals - measurement of quality, service delivery, level of attention etc.

Number of days in a week people did not have food to eat

For "safe water" and "sanitation", measurement of quality by type

Morbidity rates by type of disease and age

Infant mortality rate by age of mother

HIV/AIDS information about multiple partners

The indicator "Morbidity from HIV/AIDS by age and occupation" should be moved from Group II to Group I

Number of persons involved in caring for HIV/AIDS patients

Access to treatment for HIV/AIDS patients

Number of children born infected with HIV/AIDS

Percentage of government budget allocated to the treatment of HIV/AIDS

Number of "injuries" and "deaths" from accidents

Industrial accidents by type of industry

Number of persons who live alone by age

Need for indicators on "drug use" and "drug abuse"

Average age at first child

Knowledge of chronic diseases, diabetes (DM) and hypertension (HT) by age and education

Persons treated for these two (2) diseases by age and education

Number of newly confirmed cases of DM and HT by risk group, exposure category and age group

Health personnel trained in chronic disease (DM and HT) care and management by profession

Mortality from DM and HT by age, occupation and Urban/Rural

Mortality from DM and HT as a percentage of total mortality

Cumulative total of cases of DM and HT by age group

Prevalence of DM and HT among pregnant women

Number of orphaned children because of DM or HT of parents

HIV/AIDS prevalence among all 15 – 24 year olds

Occupancy rates of hospital beds

Prenatal mortality rates

Number of cases treated or being treated for drug abuse by age and by level of education

Access to Primary and Secondary Health Care

Number of persons with contagious diseases such as dengue, flu, other food and water borne diseases and other STD

Percentage of births registered

 

Crime

 

Measurement of organized crimes/informal statistics

Number of unreported crimes by reason (through surveys)

For indicator #2, include age of victim

For indicator #7, include level of educational level of the offender

Number of persons on probation or parole

Number of crimes committed by deportees by their age

The incidence of crime in the schools

Time taken for suspects to be identified in criminal cases

Time taken for cases to be solved

Injuries by type of weapon used

Crime by nationality

 

Decision Making

 

Members of cabinet by sex

For indicator #3 (?), use percentage instead of numbers

Include data for Trade Unions and NGOs (leadership and membership)

Consider an indicator on local government as well as parliament

 

Poverty

 

Indicator on changes in poverty status of the very POOR households

For indicator #4 (?), consider both UNDERWEIGHT and STUNTED children

Incidence of poverty by Head of Household

 

 

Information and Communication

 

Access to the internet