General Authority for Statistics

The General Authority for Statistics is the official and sole statistical reference for conducting statistical work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It carries out statistical tasks to provide accurate and updated data and indicators. Its responsibilities include technical supervision over the statistical sector, designing and implementing field surveys, conducting statistical studies and research, and analyzing data and information. Additionally, it handles the documentation and preservation of statistical data and information covering various aspects of life in the Kingdom from multiple sources. This involves recording, tabulating, analyzing, and deriving statistical indicators, all in accordance with recognized international practices and standards.

The supreme order was issued on October 9, 2015, approving the transformation of the General Authority for Statistics and Information into an independent public entity. However, statistical work in the Kingdom dates back to 1930 and has undergone several stages of development.

The website of the General Authority for Statistics (www.stats.gov.sa) offers various statistical services and products through a digital database of data, indicators, and statistics in different development fields in the Kingdom. These services are provided in multiple formats and templates to facilitate quick and efficient access to statistical data and information.

The General Authority for Statistics enjoys financial and administrative independence. It is organizationally affiliated to the Minister of Economy and Planning. According to this structure, the Authority is responsible for statistics in the Kingdom, serving as the sole official reference for conducting statistical work. It acts as the technical and regulatory supervisor of statistical work. Its responsibilities include:

*Preparing a national strategy for statistical work in the Kingdom in coordination with relevant public entities, and monitoring its implementation after its approval, proposing periodic updates.

*Collecting data and information covering all aspects of life in the Kingdom from various sources, documenting and tabulating them, collecting data and information from administrative records in public entities and private establishments, tabulating them, analyzing them, and extracting indicators.

* Independently producing and developing official statistics, disseminating them within the Kingdom, and providing them to public entities, private establishments, individuals, and international organizations in accordance with regulatory procedures. Additionally, it prepares statistical bulletins and reports for field surveys and research endeavors.

*Establishing a comprehensive system of national statistical databases across various statistical domains, and creating a centralized information system within the authority at the national level that is automatically linked to public entities.

*Preparing national statistical evidence and classifications according to international standards, utilizing them, and working on updating and enhancing them as needed.

The affairs of the General Authority for Statistics are managed and overseen by its Board of Directors, chaired by the Minister of Economy and Planning. Among its members are ministers of Energy, Commerce, Finance, Human Resources and Social Development, Education, Industry and Mineral Resources, and the Director of the National Information Center. Additionally, the Board includes the president of the authority and two specialists in its field of work, (appointed by the Council of Ministers upon nomination by the board's president). The authority conducts its work from its main headquarters in the capital city of Riyadh and has thirteen branches located across all provinces of the Kingdom.

The General Authority for Statistics conducts work and provides products in eight statistical fields: social, demographic, economic, health, educational, environmental, agricultural, and cultural, to meet the statistical needs of various client categories from governmental bodies, private sector, academics, and researchers. Among these products are censuses, including: the General Population and Housing Census (Saudi Census 2022), the Agricultural Census, and field surveys, such as the Household Income and Expenditure Survey, the Construction and Building Survey, the Women's Health and Reproductive Care Survey, and the Survey on Access and Use of Information and Communication Technology by Households, Individuals, and Establishments. It also produces bulletins such as: Petroleum and Gas Statistics Bulletin, Electric Power Bulletin, Renewable Energy Bulletin, Household Environment Survey Bulletin, Household Energy Statistics Bulletin, Aviation Transport Bulletin, Trade Exchange Bulletin, Labor Market Bulletin, Agricultural Production Bulletin, Energy Efficiency Bulletin, in addition to standard figures such as the Consumer Price Index, Wholesale Price Index, and Real Estate Price Index.