The East New Britain Provincial Government signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the National Statistical Office yesterday.
NSO only receiving one-quarter of the total funding it needs, provinces have been urged to support NSO by sharing the cost.
Acting National Statistician, John Igitoi, says the MOA is purposely to share costs during the CENSUS 2020 exercise. The head of NSO says this is paramount.
“The MOA highlights the essence of sharing the cost and cutting cost in the process of the CENSUS exercise,” said Igitoi.
East New Britain is the third province to sign this MOA with NSO, and the second for the New Guinea Islands Region.
Provincial Administrator Wilson Matawa is confident the MOA will be of benefit as the province will need timely and correct data for development reasons.
Matawa says 768 CENSUS Units have been established in its four districts.
“We will need that data to help us deliver services and have proper plans for the province,” said Matawa.
The National Statistical Office is urging all provinces to sign similar MOA’s. As the custodian of the CENSUS 2020 exercise, NSO believes the metadata collected during the exercise is crucial.
East New Britain is the third province to sign such an agreement with the NSO.
By Jack Lapauve Jr – EMTV News, Port Moresby
