THE government is stepping up awareness drive on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Eastern Visayas as part of the month-long National Statistics Month (NSM) celebration this October.
“Sustainable Development: Making Statistics Count” is the theme of this year’s NSM celebration, which focuses on the critical role of statistics in monitoring the country’s progress on achieving SDGs.
“Sustainable Development Goals or the 2030 agenda is a plan for action for people, the planet and prosperity,” said Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Regional Director Wilma Perante.
SDG will play a key role in the target setting. It aims to end poverty, to protect the planet, and for the people to enjoy peace and prosperity, according to the PSA official.
As member of the United Nations, the country will join other countries in adopting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes a set of 17 SDGs to end poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change by 2030.
National Economic and Development Authority regional project monitoring and evaluation division chief Evangeline Paran said the theme is very timely for the region because Eastern Visayas has been ranked as seond poorest region in the country.
“The SDGs will be the guide to resolve issues concerning the development in Eastern Visayas,” Paran said.
Poverty incidence in Eastern Visayas has worsened between 2012 to 2015, making the region as the country’s second poorest, based on the latest Family Income and Expenditure Survey result, the PSA reported.
Poverty level inched up to 47.3 percent during the first half of 2015 from 45.4 percent three years earlier. The region moved one notch up and dislodged Soccsksargen as the second poorest region in the country.
The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao remained the poorest area in the country with a poverty incidence of 59 percent.
The month-long celebration, spearheaded by the PSA, aims to promote, enhance and instill the awareness and appreciation of the public on the importance and value of statistics.
Joining the celebration are different government agencies, state universities, and the private sector.
According to PSA’s website, the National Statistics Month (NSM) was first observed in 1990 pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 647 signed by then President Corazon Aquino on September 20, 1990, declaring the month of October of every year as the NSM.
The NSM celebration aims to promote, enhance and instill awareness and appreciation of the importance and value of statistics to the different sectors of society, and to elicit the cooperation and support of the general public in upgrading the quality and standards of statistics in the country. (PNA)