One of the key activities of PARIS21 since its creation in 1999 has been advocacy. This has involved the production of statistical advocacy materials promoting the increased use of statistics in decision-making, the building of statistical capacity, and the need for a well financed NSDS integrated into wider development policy frameworks.

Effective advocacy for statistics, both in terms of promoting evidence-based decision making as well as ensuring that statistical activities are properly financed and resourced, is crucial if the long-term vision of developing national statistical systems is to be achieved. While there may be greater awareness of the need for better data generally as a result of the emphasis on global monitoring including MDGs, and on national poverty reduction strategies, the case for further strengthening of official statistics still needs to be made with policy makers and data users at all levels. PARIS21 is in a unique position, not only to undertake advocacy itself at the international and regional level, but also to provide support and access to advocacy material to the managers of national statistical systems. On these pages, users will find materials (e.g., videos, brochures, articles) that they can adapt for their own advocacy efforts. Should you like to receive hard copies of any of these materials, please contact the PARIS21 Secretariat at contact@paris21.org.