Allameh Tabataba’i University Strategic Recommendations for  Administrative Bodies

Allameh Tabataba’i University Strategic Recommendations for Administrative Bodies

Iran's National Statistical System: Challenges and Solutions

Author
Department of Statistics, Allameh Tabataba'i University
Abstract
Iran's national statistical system, despite its decisive role in policymaking, planning, and government performance evaluation, faces a set of structural and functional challenges that have undermined the quality of official data and the level of public trust in it. The most significant issues include the non-user-centric nature of statistical outputs, duplication of efforts among statistical producers, incoordination among the pillars of the statistical system, weakness in professionalism and specialized standards, difficulty in accessing data in formats required by users, and the weak accountability of statistical institutions toward the needs of policymakers, researchers, and society. The decline in the quality of collected data is also largely attributed to the absence of effective communication between statistical producers, enumerators, and respondents, as well as a low willingness to cooperate in statistical survey projects. At the knowledge level, the weakness of higher education statistics programs and the inability to analyze big data and modern methodologies have limited the capacity of the statistical system. Proposed strategies emphasize the professionalization of statistical institutions and the updating of technologies, strengthening the authority of the Statistical Center of Iran alongside a transparent division of labor with the Central Bank to reduce duplication, allocating sustainable budget lines for statistical projects, expanding cooperation with universities and research centers, empowering human resources through international partnerships, and establishing a monitoring and evaluation mechanism for statistical efficacy through continuous communication with users.
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