United Nations Statistical Commission Explained

United Nations Statistical Commission
Type:	Intergovernmental organization, regulatory body, advisory board
Abbreviation:	StatCom
Leader Title:	Chair
Leader Name:	Gabriella Vukovich, Hungary^[1]
Status:	Active
Location City:	Headquarters of the United Nations, New York
Location Country:	United States
Parent Organization:	United Nations Economic and Social Council
Subsidiaries:	United Nations Statistics Division

The United Nations Statistical Commission (StatCom) is a Functional Commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, established in 1947.^{[2] [3]} The Statistical Commission oversees the work of the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). Its 24 member states are elected by the Economic and Social Council on the basis of the following geographical distribution: African states (5), Asian States (4), Eastern European States (4), Latin American and Caribbean States (4), Western European and other States (7). Since July 1999 the Commission meets every year. As set forth by the Economic and Social Council, in the terms of reference,^[4] the Commission shall assist the Council:

• "In promoting the development of national statistics and the improvement of their comparability;"

• "In the coordination of the statistical work of specialized agencies;"^[5]

• "In the development of the central statistical services of the Secretariat;"

• "In advising the organs of the United Nations on general questions relating to the collection, analysis and dissemination of statistical information;"

• "In promoting the improvement of statistics and statistical methods generally."

One of the best known subunits of the Statistics Division is the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names (UNGEGN), also known as the United Nations Conference on the Standardization of Geographical Names (UNCSGN). This unit attempts to standardize the names of locations across languages, alphabets, and cultures.

The sixth UN Conference on the Standardization of Geographical Names was in 1992 (New York), the seventh in 1998 (New York), the eighth in 2002 (Berlin), and the ninth in 2007 (New York). One issue addressed at these conferences was the Sea of Japan naming dispute.

The Bureau

The officers are the Chairman, 3 Vice-chairmen and the Rapporteur, elected for a one-year period by the members of the Commission at the beginning of a session. Since 1999, its role is more of a steering one; the Chairman may seek for complementary assistance from other members (Friends of the Chair).

Chairpersonship^[6]

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2023	54th	Hungary	Gabriella Vukovich
2022	53rd	Hungary	Gabriella Vukovich
2021	52nd	Japan	Shigeru Kawasaki
2020	51st	Japan	Shigeru Kawasaki
2019	50th	Kenya	Zachary Mwangi
2018	49th	Kenya	Zachary Mwangi
2017	48th	Brazil	Wasmália Bivar
2016	47th	Brazil	Wasmália Bivar
2015	46th	United Kingdom	John Pullinger
2014	45th	United Kingdom	Jil Matheson
2013	44th		Gabriella Vukovich
2012	43rd		Gabriella Vukovich
2011	42nd	Oman	Ali Bin Mahboob
2010	41st	Oman	Ali Bin Mahboob
2009	40th	South Africa	Pali Lehohla
2008	39th	South Africa	Pali Lehohla
2007	38th	Mexico	Gilberto Calvillo Vives
2006	37th		Gilberto Calvillo Vives
2005	36th	United States	Katherine Wallman
2004	35th	United States	Katherine Wallman
2003	34th	Hungary	Tamás Mellár
2002	33rd		Tamás Mellár
2001	32nd	Japan	Shigeru Kawasaki
2000	31st		Guest Charumbira
1999	30th		Guest Charumbira
1997	29th		Carlos Jarque
1995	28th	United Kingdom	Bill McLennan
1994	Special session		Jozef Olenski
1993	27th		Willem Begeer
1991	26th		Willem Begeer
1989	25th		Luis Alberto Beccaria
1987	24th		Emmanuel Oti Boateng
1985	23rd	Ireland	Tom Linehan
1983	22nd	Hungary	Vera Nyitrai
1981	21st		Joseph W. Duncan
1979	20th		Mikhail Antonovich Korolev
1976	19th	India	V. R. Rao
1974	18th		Claus Moser
1972	17th		Jean Ripert
1970	16th		Jean Ripert
1968	15th		Keith Archer
1966	14th	Norway	Petter Jakob Bjerve
1965	13th	Norway	Petter Jakob Bjerve
1962	12th	Ireland	Donal McCarthy
1960	11th	Ireland	Donal McCarthy
1958	10th		George Wood
1956	9th		P.C. Mahalanobis
1954	8th		P.C. Mahalanobis
1953	7th		Harry Campion
1951	6th		Harry Campion
1950	5th		Philip Idenburg
1949	4th	Netherlands	Philip Idenburg
1948	3rd	Canada	Herbert Marshall
1947 (August)	2nd	Canada	Herbert Marshall
1947 (January)	1st	Canada	Herbert Marshall
1946	Nuclear session	United States	Stuart A. Rice

See also

• Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities
• List of national and international statistical services
• United Nations Statistics Division
• Voorburg group
• World Statistics Day

Further reading

• Hausner, Isolde: Die „United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names“ (UNGEGN) und die Standardisierung geographischer Namen. In: Kainz, W. / Kriz, K. / Riedl, A. (eds.): Aspekte der Kartographie im Wandel. Festschrift für Ingrid Kretschmer zum 65. Geburtstag. Wien 2004 (= Wiener Schriften zur Geographie und Kartographie).
• Kerfoot, Helen: Role of the United Nations in the standardization of geographical names: some fifty years on. In: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistics Division (ed.): Manual for the standardization of geographical names. United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names. New York 2006: 83-97.

External links

• • Home page for Statistical Division
• Official home page for UNGEGN
• Website for UNGEGN Working Group on Romanization Systems

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bureau . UN Statistical Commission . 10 January 2021 . 11 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210111190534/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/51st-session/bureau/ . live .
2. Web site: Introduction . UN Statistical Commission . 10 January 2021 . 13 October 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171013174500/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom . live .
3. Rice . Stuart A. . 1946 . The United Nations Statistical Commission . Econometrica . 14 . 3 . 242–250 . 10.2307/1905775 . 0012-9682.
4. Web site: Background information on the Statistical Commission and practical information on its functioning . 2013-01-13 . 2021-10-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211025214025/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/doc13/RD-Functioning.pdf . live .
5. refer also to Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities (CCSA)
6. Web site: Chairs of past sessions . 2013-01-13 . 2013-03-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130309012942/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/table-chairs.pdf . live .