On Wednesday, October 14, the Anguilla Statistics Department introduced its ‘New Look’ website at the Teachers’ Resource Centre. The launch was one of the features of Statistics Week 2020 under the theme “Connecting the World with Data We Can Trust.” The website was conceptualized by the staff both present and past of the Anguilla Statistics Department and created by Mr. Kyrone Smith, of the Department of Information Technology and E-Services (DITES).
According to the Head of the Statistics Department, Chief Statistician Mrs. Lori-Rae Alleyne-Franklin, the new, innovative, user-friendly website provides the Department with the ability to present statistics in a more organised fashion. It replaces the former website that was plagued by certain drawbacks and for the most part was not user-friendly.
During her remarks, Mrs. Alleyne-Franklin noted: “The work of the development of the ‘New Look’ Statistics Department website was long in coming. Work started as far back as in 2007, and it was always a stop-start process. “We had to be mindful of the resources we had and the mandate we had to conduct. We had to determine whether or not putting the resources into building the website, with its concept and design, was relevant at each step of the way”.
“We determined that this year we would commission the website, even with the scaling down of events as a result of COVID-19. This new website is much more user-friendly. It is designed in such a way that one would easily understand where to go for the required data.” Mrs. Alleyne-Franklin pointed out that the ‘New Look’ website features four domains of statistics, namely: Demographics and Social; Economics; Environment; and Methodologies. She thanked members of the previous staff who had started the website development, and applauded the current team who had worked so diligently in bringing it to fruition.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Development, Commerce, Information Technology and Natural Resources, Mrs. Chanelle Petty-Barrett, remarked: “This new website is intended to be a repository for the most up-to-date official statistics of the Government of Anguilla. As we celebrate statistics week, and join the rest of the region and the world in observing Caribbean Statistics Day and World Statistics Day respectively, we are reminded of the importance of data in improving the lives of everyday people and connecting all of us as global citizens”.
Mrs. Petty-Barrett continued: “We probably give no thought to how we use data everyday – to make life’s decisions – , but in reality using data is a part of what we do almost naturally. For example, when driving, we check from time to time on how much fuel our vehicles are consuming, and we use this data and data from previous experience, to decide how close the needle can get to ‘E’ before going to the gas station.”
“Let us think about this in the context of a country”, she said. “Imagine Anguilla as the vehicle, and we are driven by our leaders. Imagine as well that the gas gauge is broken, so there is no data available on how much gas is in the tank. How will our leaders know how far we can go when we might be in danger of running out of resources? How will decisions be made? What will guide our leaders’ actions? What precautionary measures would they be able to put in place? You can see how easily things can run amuck without the necessary data. So to make sound decisions nationally, we must have access to good data — data we can trust.”
The website was unveiled in the Public Library, following the addresses in the Teachers’ Resource Centre. The cutting of the ribbon was done by the Honourable Kyle Hodge, Minister of Economic Development, Commerce, Information Technology and Natural Resources.
After unveiling the website, Minister Hodge told The Anguillian: “With my short term in office, thus far, I have come to realise that statistics is key as it relates to making various policy decisions and as it relates to charting our course forward. Our future is dependent on accurate statistics. And in order for government to understand societal needs, statistics is indispensible. I have determined that I will be a champion for statistics, especially in terms charting the course in business development, tourism, and the various sectors of our economy that are connected to tourism as the drivers of our industry.”
The Developer of the website, Mr. Kyrone Smith, also spoke to The Anguillian: “Work on the statistics website was a definite challenge,” he said. “Due to a lack of resources, and time constraints, we were restricted along the way. Our greatest challenge came as a result of Hurricane Irma, though.”
“Due to the hurricane, we were forced to drawback a lot,” he continued, “and we had to allocate time and resources elsewhere to concerns other than the website. But today, for me as a developer, the experience is quite rewarding. The outcome is well worth the challenge, and I have gained quite a lot of knowledge and experience from the actual development process. My satisfaction comes when I see that my work will be used by the global public.”
As of now, the Anguilla Public Library is the custodian of the new website on a public platform. There, a kiosk is stationed near the reception desk from which the new website can be accessed. The Anguillian also spoke with Ms. Julianne Leveret, the Director of Library Services, who said: “As a knowledge centre, we are quite honoured. We think that this is the perfect place for the kiosk. Now, school children who do their assignments and projects can easily access national data. It is lovely, and we do appreciate the honour of helping the public to find the information that they need.”
– Staff Reporter, James R. Harrigan
