Minister in the Presidency, Trevor Manual and Dr Pravesh Debba of the CSIR, President of SASA for the 2010/2011 term. |
“Reliable statistics can act as an early-warning system for the economic wellbeing of a country. Data, and statistics derived for that, must be of a high quality with every aspect being scrutinised as if under a microscope. We must remember that statistical mistakes live on for a long time,” warned the Minister in the Presidency responsible for the National Planning Commission, Trevor Manual.
These were the words of the Minister at the opening of the 53rd annual conference of the South African Statistical Association (SASA), held during the first week of November at the CSIR. The conference was co-hosted by the CSIR and Statistics SA, with the timing being most opportune - Census 2011 wrapped up the day before the conference started.
CSIR CEO Dr Sibusiso Sibisi welcomed delegates on behalf of the CSIR. He noted: “The collection of reliable data is essential to make informed decisions and policy, as well as to assist in planning. Data are central to all sciences – data can confirm or contradict scientific theories.
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CSIR CEO Dr Sibusiso Sibisi with Pali Lehohla, the Statistician General. They represented the hosting organisations of the SASA conference. |
Sibisi continued to congratulate the Statistician General Pali Lehohla on a successful Census 2011. Generally referred to as ‘Mr Census’ by his colleagues, Lehohla noted that evidence is the basis for good decisions and that accountability is crucial.
Dr Pravesh Debba of the CSIR, 2010/2011 President of SASA and Chair of the conference organising committee, explained that the aim of the conference was to bring together statisticians and other quantitative researchers from around the country and abroad. “At the annual conference we share our research findings and experiences, discuss emerging ideas and challenges in our fields, and build and refresh networks,” said Debba.
This year, a number of distinguished international statisticians were invited for the benefit of local participants. The three-day conference was preceded and also concluded by one-day workshops. The conference and side events were organised by Debba and his colleagues of the CSIR’s statistical modelling and analysis research group.
View the peer-reviewed papers presented at the SASA 2011 conference. Abstracts of all papers are available in the programme on the conference website.
Dr Pravesh Debba of the CSIR, Chair of the organising committee of the 53rd annual conference of SASA and President of SASA in 2010/2011. |
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