28 February 2014: The UN Statistical Division (UNSD) held two meetings on the measurement and implementation of the UN development agenda: the 25th Inter-Agency and Expert Group Meeting on Millennium Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-MDG), on 26-27 February 2014; and a seminar on emerging issues, titled ‘Managing the Data Revolution: Integrated Statistics and Partnerships in Data for Statistical Organizations in the Post-2015 Era,’ on 28 February.

The 25th IAEG-MDG meeting focused on how the 2014 MDG monitoring report will be prepared, and which global data will be analyzed to show the current global progress towards achievement of the MDGs. The 2014 report will represent the second-to-last yearly assessment of global progress on the MDGs, which expire in 2015. At the meeting, the participants also discussed the post-2015 development agenda and heard a summary of the informal ‘Measuring Progress’ meeting of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The ‘Managing the Data Revolution’ Seminar brought together data experts, official statistics providers, civil society, and representatives of the UN systems to discuss data partnerships around the post-2015 development agenda. Ivo Havinga, Chief of the UNSD Economic Statistics Branch, opened the event saying that it represented the “unique knowledge center” of the statistical community, around which experts are able to share progress and ideas. Two panels, ‘Partnerships in Data’ and ‘Integrated Statistics,’ highlighted the success stories of monitoring platforms, open data initiatives, and the work of National Statistical Offices (NSOs). Many panelists recognized that the post-2015 era will pose new challenges to statisticians to collect and monitor new kinds of information.

The two meetings, both held at UN Headquarters in New York, US, preceded the 45th Session of the UN Statistical Commission (UNSC), convening from 4-7 March 2014. The theme of this session will be ‘Integrated Information for a Better World,’ and it will take up many of the themes introduced at the IAEG-MDG and seminar events. [UNSD Calendar of Events] [IAEG-MDG Website] [Seminar on Emerging Issues Agenda] [Seminar Webcast] [UN Press Release on Seminar] [UNSC Website] [IISD RS Sources]