SAS® Analytics help fight global poverty

Statistics Norway provides developing nations SAS® software to better understand basic needs, justify aid requests

CARY, NC – Powerful analytic software might seem a low priority for deeply impoverished nations, where safe water is scarce and electricity for computers is unreliable at best. But it could make all the difference in the world.

Under an innovative program managed by Statistics Norway, Norway’s central agency for official statistics, a growing list of underdeveloped nations receive software from SAS, the leader in business analytics. The struggling countries will use advanced SAS Analytics to analyze poverty statistics and census data for the 2010 World Population and Housing Census. The software will also generate documentation to support aid requests from agencies such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, United Nations and others.

“Statistics form a crucial base for governments monitoring and managing economies, an imperative for efficient resource allocation and decision making in both private and public sectors,” said said Dag Roll-Hansen, Senior Adviser/Sociologist, Division for Development Cooperation at Statistics Norway. “Statistics reveal differences and changes in living conditions and are needed to improve the situation of the poor. Statistical analysis underpins evidence-based, transparent policy making by establishing a factual basis for open public debate in the media and in national decision-making bodies.”

“In short, statistics tell us how successful policies are: whether maternal mortality will decrease through investment in healthcare; whether more children attend school when there is an increase in trained teachers; or whether fewer people starve by the implementation of agricultural projects. Statistics reveal whether our goals are achievable and if our strategies are on the right track. They are essential to improving living conditions in underdeveloped nations,” said Roll-Hansen.

Five countries – Eritrea, Uganda, Albania, Malawi and Moldova – have currently received SAS Analytics Pro, and are working with onsite Statistics Norway staffers to develop the information needed to better meet the needs of their citizens. Depending on the situation, experts from the Norwegian agency will remain in those countries for years.

Using SAS software, developing nations can identify their populations’ needs and disseminate the information to appropriate government, public, private and nonbusiness organizations. The SAS package, which operates on standard desktop computers, offers a number of relevant features, including large dataset analysis, poverty mapping, national accounts, audit trails and other capabilities.
About Statistics Norway

Statistics Norway (Statistisk Sentralbyrå) is the central Norwegian office for governmental statistics. Through its international development division, the agency has cooperated with sister organizations in developing countries for more than 15 years. Statistics Norway believes that high-quality statistics contribute to economic growth, poverty reduction, good governance, democracy building and international comparability.

About SAS
SAS is the leader in business analytics software and services, and the largest independent vendor in the business intelligence market. Through innovative solutions delivered within an integrated framework, SAS helps customers at more than 45,000 sites improve performance and deliver value by making better decisions faster. Since 1976 SAS has been giving customers around the world The Power to Know® .