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The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), is chairing the 44th meeting of the Permanent Technical Committee for Statistics of the Economic and Social Council of the League of Arab States, hosted in Jeddah on Monday, September 28, 2026, with the participation of heads and representatives of statistical offices of the member states, as well as relevant Arab and regional organizations.
The meeting, chaired by Fahad Aldossari, President of GASTAT, discussed several priority areas for Arab statistical work, including developing and updating official statistics, Sustainable Development Goal indicators, and exchanging statistical experiences and expertise among Arab countries. It also explored ways to strengthen coordination and cooperation among relevant statistical authorities, offices, and organizations.
Furthermore, this meeting comes in light of rapid developments in data sources, methodologies, and technologies used to produce statistics, requiring greater integration among statistical offices and the development of capabilities to support the quality of statistics across Arab countries.
The meeting also comes as part of GASTAT’s preparations to host the 6th UN World Data Forum in Riyadh in November 2026, as GASTAT works to strengthen its organizational readiness and enrich the Forum’s themes by addressing the latest developments in statistical work through panel discussions, workshops, conferences, and international meetings.
 

The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) hosted in Jeddah the 51st meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Arab Institute for Training and Research in Statistics (AITRS), with the participation of heads and representatives of Arab statistical offices, as well as relevant Arab and regional organizations.
The meeting discussed a number of topics related to developing statistical capacities across Arab countries and strengthening the role of training and research in keeping pace with the rapid transformations taking place in the field of statistics. These include technological advancements and the adoption of modern tools to enhance the quality of official statistics and strengthen their ability to support development and economic plans and policies across the Arab world.

GASTAT’s hosting of the meeting comes as part of its efforts to strengthen Arab statistical cooperation and in recognition of the important role played by AITRS in supporting knowledge and expertise within statistical authorities. These efforts contribute to developing professional competencies and enhancing the readiness of statistical systems to meet the growing demand for reliable data and statistics.
The meeting is being hosted as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia prepares to host the 6th  UN World Data Forum in Riyadh in November 2026. The forum will bring together the global data community to discuss the future of data and statistics and to advance partnerships and international cooperation in this field.
 

أطلقت الهيئة العامة للإحصاء منتجًا إحصائيًا شهريًا جديدًا بعنوان (إحصاءات التجارة الدولية في السلع غير البترولية)، يوفر بيانات ومؤشرات تفصيلية، تشمل الصادرات وإعادة التصدير والواردات وفق التصنيفات الإحصائية المعتمدة. 
ويهدف المنتج إلى رفع حداثة بيانات التجارة الدولية غير البترولية، بما يدعم متابعة تطوراتها وتحليلها والاستفادة من مؤشراتها في الوقت المناسب، ويوفر للمستخدمين بيانات شهرية حديثة عن الشهر المرجعي السابق حول حركة التجارة غير البترولية للمملكة. 
ويأتي إطلاق المنتج ضمن جهود الهيئة في تطوير منتجاتها الإحصائية وتعزيز إتاحة البيانات وفق دوريات زمنية تلبي احتياجات المستخدمين، وتتيح إمكانية إجراء الدراسات والمقارنات ذات الأغراض البحثية والإحصائية.
ويمكن الاطلاع على منتج «إحصاءات التجارة الدولية في السلع غير البترولية» عبر الموقع الرسمي للهيئة العامة للإحصاء.
 

The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) organizes, on Thursday, September 24, 2026, a quarterly virtual workshop titled “Statistical Practices: Transformation in Health Statistics – Women and Child Health Survey” as part of the Road to Riyadh events. The workshop is part of a series of quarterly workshops showcasing GASTAT’s experiences and practices in various areas of statistical work and contributing to knowledge exchange within the statistical community.
The workshop aims to review GASTAT’s experience in developing the Women and Child Health Survey as a national statistical product, highlight the statistical and community practices that support the quality of its data, and underscore its role in supporting decision-making, the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030, and the Sustainable Development Goals.
In addition, the workshop will cover several topics related to the transformation in social and health statistics, the experience of the Women and Child Health Survey, community and statistical success factors, as well as the key findings of the survey.
The workshop will be held virtually with local and international participation, enabling participants to share knowledge and expertise in the field of health and social statistics.
It is noteworthy that the workshop is part of GASTAT’s preparations to host the 6th UN World Data Forum in November 2026. Through the workshop, GASTAT aims to showcase Saudi Arabia’s efforts to advance statistical work and enhance the quality of statistics in support of public policies and decision-making.