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GASTAT’s President, Dr. Fahad Aldossari, held a series of bilateral meetings with several heads and directors of international organizations and statistical centers during the Saudi Statistics Forum. The forum was hosted in Riyadh from April 27-28, 2025.
These meetings involved discussions on areas of bilateral cooperation, exploring opportunities for integration and the exchange of expertise in developing statistical work, and examining ways to expand partnerships with leading statistical entities at both regional and international levels. The aim was to enhance data quality and contribute to the development of statistical products and indicators that support decision-making.
The meetings included discussions with: Dr. Johannes Jutting, Executive Head of PARIS21; Dr. Ola Awad, President of PCBS; Dr. Steve Macfeely, OECD Chief Statistician; Professor Xuming He, President of ISI; Mr. Mohamed Bin Ahmed Al Obaidly, Director-General of the National Statistics Center of Qatar; Intisar Abdullah Al Wahaibi, Director General of the GCC Statistical Centre;   Dr. Diaa Awad Kazem, President of the Statistics and Geospatial Information Authority in Iraq; Dr. Khalifa Al-Barwani, Chief Executive Officer at National Centre for Statistics and Information in Oman; Ms. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK, Director General of SESRIC; Mr. Rafeal Diaz, Senior Statistician at ILO; and Dr. Ziad Abdullah, Director General of the Arab Institute for Training and Statistical Research.

During the meetings, Dr. Fahad Aldossari emphasized GASTAT's commitment to strengthening its international and regional partnerships to develop methodologies, enhance the efficiency of statistical systems, expand the scope of open data, and keep pace with global technological advancements in the field of statistics and analysis.

The Saudi Statistics Forum is a significant national platform for activating statistical cooperation, promoting capacity building, and transferring knowledge. It was held with the participation of prominent statistical leaders, decision-makers, and local and international experts, and was attended by over 300 participants from various entities related to statistical work.
 

GASTAT signed four agreements on the concluding day of the Saudi Statistics Forum. The event was held under the patronage of His Excellency the Minister of Economy and Planning, Chairman of GASTAT’s Board of Directors. It brought together several ministers, heads and representatives of international organizations and statistical offices, local and international experts and decision-makers in the statistical sector.

The cooperation agreements were signed with the Riyadh Chamber, Jeddah University, the Social Development Bank, and ROSHN Group. The agreements aim to strengthen collaboration, enhance coordination, and integrate efforts across the parties' areas of expertise. They also establish an institutional framework for joint activities and tasks, while supporting the development of institutional capacities in areas of mutual interest.

The areas of cooperation focused on several strategic tracks, most notably the exchange of technical support and expertise according to each party’s specialization, strengthening partnerships in the development of statistical products and indicators, improving the quality of statistical data, and promoting statistical awareness across various sectors.

GASTAT's president, Dr. Fahad Aldossari, emphasized that strengthening cooperation with government and private sectors is a key pillar in achieving national and sustainable development goals. He emphasized that the exchange of statistical data and expertise contributes to enhancing institutional performance efficiency, meeting the needs of various stakeholders, and anticipating future trends for the development of statistical products and services, thereby strengthening the national economy and raising public awareness that supports comprehensive development.

It is worth noting that GASTAT is the only official statistical reference for statistical data and information in Saudi Arabia. It plays a key role in collecting, analyzing, and studying statistical data and information to support decision-makers and policy-makers.

The Saudi Statistics Forum concluded its work on its last day with three-panel sessions that addressed some key topics and themes in the statistical sector, with the participation of some representatives of international organizations, local and international experts, and decision-makers.
On the second and final day, a panel discussion entitled “Modern Methods of Innovation and Statistical Development” was held in which participants talked about the role of innovative technologies in changing and modernizing the way data is produced, collected, and analyzed across various fields; employing remote sensing techniques and satellite images in geographical and agricultural statistics; using statistical methods to analyze future trends and forecasts; raising awareness of the automation of statistical processes; and the role of statistical innovation in increasing the level of confidence in official statistics.
The fourth-panel discussion was devoted to the topic: “The Role of The Private Sector in Producing Statistical Data” in which some specialists in the statistical sector discussed the role of the private sector in supporting and producing statistical data and integration between statistical institutions and data users, in addition to the importance of the contribution of private sector components from private companies and institutions in providing data and producing statistics related to the private sector or the national development scope in general, and the challenges it faces in producing and providing high-quality data, the importance of big data and statistical analysis innovations in improving the quality of economic estimates and indicators and opportunities to enhance partnership with the private sector.
The last session reviewed “Enhancing the Relationship between Statistical Agencies and Data Beneficiaries” and discussed ways to enhance the relationship between statistical offices and users by facilitating access to data and indicators of statistical products and providing them in multiple formats and various services and emphasizing the continuous work to develop the level of relationship and communication by offering platforms capable of presenting data in a safe manner and various digital formats supported by graphs, tables, and explanatory designs according to the best local and international practices, standards, and technologies.

The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Statistics Estonia in the Republic of Estonia during the Saudi Statistics Forum, which was held in Riyadh from April 27 to 28, 2025, as part of efforts to strengthen international cooperation in the field of statistical work.
The MoU aims to enhance cooperation between the two parties, strengthen the coordination and integration of efforts in statistical fields, develop institutional capacities, and establish a general framework for joint activities and tasks that serve the strategic objectives of both parties.
The agreement was signed by Dr. Fahad bin Abdullah Aldossari, President of GASTAT, and Mr. Urmet Lee, Director of Statistics Estonia.
The MoU includes cooperation in the exchange of expertise, technical and knowledge support, as well as the exchange of programs related to raising statistical awareness and public communication strategies. It also covers the organization of conferences, seminars, and workshops, as well as the exchange of visits between experts and specialists in fields related to statistical work.
It is noteworthy that the Saudi Statistics Forum is the first of its kind. It aims to discuss important topics in the statistical field and highlight the positive impact of the statistics sector in supporting the progress of development and sustainable growth in the Kingdom, as well as reinforce the importance of data and statistics in raising awareness among members of society.