World Bank approves 50 mln USD for Kenya statistics bureau

The World Bank has approved 50 million U.S. dollar to improve the work of Kenya's statistics bureau.

The funding aims to help the the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) generate better and more accessible data for policymakers.

Diarietou Gaye, World Bank Country Director for Kenya, said Friday the funds would enable the bureau to better economic management, generate high quality data and strengthen its capacity.

"Open data helps not only to measure progress, but also to push it forward. Kenya has made significant progress on the open data front, but more needs to be done to ensure the data are current and regularly updated," Gaye said in a statement issued in Nairobi.

Gaye said high-quality data are critical to measure progress in growing the economy, reducing poverty and fostering shared prosperity.

"When statistics are up-to-date and regularly released publicly, the data will inform decision making in the public and private sector alike," she said, noting that this successful development financing is about achieving results and institutional strengthening.

Johan A. Mistiaen, the senior economist at a local bank, said the current estimates of poverty and inequality are based on data that are a decade old.

Mistiaen said the operation would support a program of economic and household surveys (including the ongoing 2015-16 Kenya Integrated Household Budget Survey) to update these statistics and henceforth produce these data on a regular basis.

"As Africa's newest lower-middle income country, Kenya needs to generate the high-quality economic statistics required to inform and attract investments and help grow the economy," Mistiaen said. Enditem