Egypt was ranked 26th on the World Bank's 2010 Bulletin Board on Statistical Capacity (BBSC), with a statistical capacity index of 81 points. Kazakhstan came in first, with an index of 96 points.
The BBSC provides information on various aspects of national statistical systems in 185 developing countries. A country's statistical capacity–i.e., that country’s ability to extract and publish reliable and timely statistical data–consists of three sub-indicators, including statistical methodology, source data, and periodic data.
According to a report issued by Egypt's Council of Ministers, Egypt was brought into a data-sharing system established by the International Monetary Fund in January 2005. Of the 68 countries that have joined the system, Egypt is currently ranked number 59. The report also notes that several Egyptian ministries and state agencies are currently involved in the process of publishing data in accordance with specific time periods.
The BBSC, issued on the occasion of International Statistics Day (20 October), revealed that nearly two-thirds of Egyptians aged 18 years and older agree that the media plays an important role in the dissemination of data and official statistics, while 9 percent of the same age bracket disagree.
Singapore ranked first on the BBSC's transparent government policy-making index, followed by Hong Kong. Egypt, for its part, ranked 68th for the same category. The index measures the degree of transparency with which information is disseminated concerning changes in government policy, and how easily that information can be accessed by the public.
In 1946, the United Nations General Assembly–in its first meeting ever–issued Resolution 59, which described freedom of access to information as a "basic human right" and the "cornerstone" of all freedoms proclaimed by the nascent world body.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
