By Obinna Nwachukwu, Abuja

Statistician- General of the Federation / CEO of NBS Prince Adeyemi Adeniran has assured the Nigerian public and the international community that reports by the Bureau is accurate and reliable

NBS CEO noted that, though NBS is an agency of the government its data and statistics stand the test of time

He spoke in Keffi Nasarawa state at the ongoing 3 day retreat for journalists and civil society organisations organised by the NBS

“Some persons will not believe anything published by NBS simply because it’s a government institution, however, when the same thing is published by the IMF or the World Bank, or any other development partner, they accept it without question, forgetting completely, that those same development partners rely on us fully to produce those indicators.

“So, as can be clearly seen, we are in a sensitive position. I guess this is the same for the media in many respects.

“Some sections of the public will only believe a news item or story if it came from a foreign media outlet, as opposed to a local outlet”, he said

Presenting a keynote address at the retreat, the NBS CEO said a survey of National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on sources through which Nigerians get news showed 79 percent get their news through social media and 31 percent via print media.

The survey which was conducted in June 2022 comprising Nigerians of between the ages of 18 – 50 years revealed that 61% from TV, 79% – and 95% online platform.

Harping on importance of information especially as it relates to data releases, he said, ” with this population demography being the most politically and economically active, and numerically significant, the information they get at any point in time is very important, given the potential impact it can have on the whole nation.

He said considering the vast reach of the top two platforms through which they get their news, and the speed at which news items travel through those platforms, it becomes more important that the veracity and authenticity of the reportage is not in doubt.

” Statistics, without exaggeration, are part of the fabric of the present-day world. They are a pervasive feature of daily life, shaping the way we think and behave, in ways that many of us no longer realise.

” Almost every key aspect of modern life – the quality of the air we breathe, the severity of a medical condition, the performance record of our businesses, the price of assets we own, the health of the economy in which we operate, the national leader we want to vote, so on and so forth – are statistically measured in one way or another”.

” Thus, there is no question to whether the media and civil society should work with the statistical system, but more about, how we can strengthen our working relationship, and enhance it for better effectiveness and results.

” I believe that is exactly what this retreat is designed to achieve over the next few days”, he said.

He said the retreat was imperative, ” as it provides an opportunity for us as the custodian of official statistics, you the media, and civil society organisations, to engage with one another as partners in progress, with the aim of understanding ourselves better and finding ways in which our collaboration can be enhanced for our mutual benefit”, Adeniran said

The 3 day retreat is being attended by about 80 participants drawn from the Media, civil society organisations and the NBS