The Tonga Statistics Department (TSD), the Ministry of Education and Training (MET) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) successfully co-conducted a 1.5-day workshop on Thursday 3rd and Friday 4th of August 2023, at the TSD conference room. The aim of the workshop was to validate the findings from the household survey, the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) – Education Analysis for Global Learning and Equity (EAGLE) and deliberate on the strategic utilization of this data for planning, advocacy, and policy.
This workshop follows the review workshop of the MICS-EAGLE held in Tonga in 2022, where key stakeholders shared their feedback to strengthen the analysis. Similarly, relevant stakeholders participated in this workshop, including the Ministry of Education and Training (Education Management and Information System Unit, Primary School Division, Secondary School Division, Inclusive Education Unit, Early Childhood Education Unit, Exams Unit and the Policy, Planning and Research Division), Ministry of Internal Affairs (Social Protection and Vulnerable Unit and Women’s Affairs and Gender Equality Unit), National Planning Development Division from the Prime Minister’s Office and The Tonga Statistics Department.
The workshop was chaired by the Ministry of Education and Training and jointly facilitated by both parties including Ms. Arisa Oba, Education Officer – Teaching and Learning, Digital Education and Adolescent Skills Development Lead, UNICEF.
Day 1 focused on the crucial task of validating key findings of Tonga MICS-EAGLE, exploring their potential translation into policy decisions and actionable initiatives within the education sector. Day 2 provided an intensive exploration of the conceptual underpinnings, definitions, and calculation methodologies intrinsic to MICS-EAGLE indicators. These indicators encompassed critical facets such as the Learning outcomes, Completion rates, Education access, Enrollment and attendance rates, Dropout and repetition rates, Out-of-school children, ICT skills and other cross-sectoral indicator such as parental involvement, child labour and child marriage.
The Tonga Statistics Department is heartened by the practical application of MICS data and the confluence of key stakeholders within the National Statistical System. TSD takes note of the statistical training needs articulated by these stakeholders and eagerly anticipates a collaborative journey towards strengthening their statistical capacities. Furthermore, TSD enthusiastically looks forward to collaborating with these valued partners in anticipation of the forthcoming MICS survey scheduled for 2024.