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Africa's Statistical Tragedy
Author(s) -
Devarajan Shantayanan
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
review of income and wealth
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.024
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1475-4991
pISSN - 0034-6586
DOI - 10.1111/roiw.12013
Subject(s) - tragedy (event) , per capita , openness to experience , economics , transparency (behavior) , poverty , development economics , population , statistical analysis , statistics , economic growth , political science , demography , sociology , psychology , social science , law , mathematics , social psychology
While A frica may have overcome its growth tragedy, it is facing a statistical tragedy, in that the statistical foundations of the recent growth in per‐capita GDP and reduction in poverty are quite weak. In many countries, GDP accounts use old methods, population censuses are out of date, and poverty estimates are infrequent and often not comparable over time. The proximate reasons have to do with weak capacity, inadequate funding, and a lack of coordination of statistical activities. But the underlying cause may be the political sensitivity of these statistics, and some donors' tendency to go around countries' own N ational S tatistical D evelopment S trategies ( NSDS ). Greater openness and transparency of statistics, and a higher profile for the NSDS , possibly with “naming and shaming” of those who try to circumvent it, may help A fricans turn around their statistical tragedy.