Statistics Day is celebrated in Tonga every five years, in alignment with the global recognition of the importance of official statistics in national development. The Tonga Statistics Department uses this occasion to raise public awareness about the role of data in decision-making and policy formulation.
Background
At its 41st Session in February 2010, the United Nations Statistical Commission proposed celebrating 20 October 2010 as World Statistics Day (Decision 41/109).
Recognizing that the production of reliable, timely statistics and indicators of countries’ progress is indispensable for informed policy decisions and monitoring implementation of the Millennium Development Goals, the General Assembly adopted on 3 June 2010 Resolution 64/267, which officially designated 20 October 2010 as the first World Statistics Day under the theme “Celebrating the many achievements of official statistics.”
In 2015, with Resolution 96/282, the General Assembly decided to designate 20 October 2015 as the second World Statistics Day under the theme “Better data, better lives”. It also established that World Statistics Day would be celebrated every five years on 20 October.
In 2020, the third World Statistics Day was celebrated under the theme “Connecting the world with data we can trust“.
In 2025, Tonga will celebrate World Statistics Day on 20 October under the global theme:
“Quality statistics and data for everyone.” The Tonga Statistics Department began observing Statistics Day annually since 2016, to continuously promote the value of data in national development.