Ten representatives from ten Pacific Island countries, including Tonga, are working with experts to improve data collection and planning to improve the lives of the most vulnerable families and children, at a workshop this week, 19-27 March.

The workshop comes after UNICEF released a report warning most Pacific Island countries that poor data collection for children would fail to meet some of the child-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) resulting in children at risk of being left behind.

Participants at the workshop include statisticians and line ministry managers from the Cook Islands, Fiji Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu, as well as experts from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Pacific Community (SPC).

UNICEF Representative at the workshop, Sheldon Yett, said it is important to have sound and internationally comparable household level statistics to target resources in order to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and meet the needs of the most vulnerable.

“This workshop is to ensure that global best practices are in place for household surveys in the Pacific.”

The workshop aims to improve the quality and standard of household surveys in the Pacific region including integrating data on women and children to other surveys for the SDGs, as well as technical advice and technical support for survey designs among other things.

UNFPA’s Director for the Pacific Region, Bruce Campbell said the workshop “provides a unique and timely opportunity to ensure that due attention for the health and well-being of women and children will be incorporated as countries across the Pacific take on the important task of monitoring progress toward the SDGs”.

SPC’s Deputy Director General, Audrey Aumua, said “partnership with our members and development partners” would overcome the huge challenge “to achieve the SDGs and to support our members to realise their development aspirations”.

“This workshop is a necessary initiative towards generating the evidence base to form policy to improve the situation of children and women in the Pacific region.”

The first three days of the workshop will focus on larger issues related to data availability and quality in the region. After this, support to plan surveys will be provided to participants from countries conducting household surveys in 2018-19.