STATIN’s work indispensable

THE WORK of the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) is indispensable to policymakers, academics and the general public at large. STATIN’s business is measurement. Without these measurements, we would simply be operating on gut feelings and impressions which we concoct in our heads.

STATIN gives us facts on demographic changes in our population. Without these, data planners would not know how many and where to build new schools and clinics. If our population is ageing, the mix of social services required would be different from that if we have a younger population.

While these demographic data are very important to me as an academic and a citizen, I rely on STATIN most for economic and social data. The monthly publication of inflation, the quarterly and annual estimates of economic growth as well as the annual Survey of Living Conditions allow an evaluation not only of government policy, but also of economic theory. PETER-JOHN GORDON Department of Economics University of the West Indies (Mona)