ABSTRACT
Paris 21 is a new international process by a global consortium of policy-makers, statisticians, and users of statistical information in support of development. It was launched in Paris in 1999, as an initiative of the United Nations, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union. Paris 21 aims to build statistical capacity as the foundation for effective development policies by helping to develop well-managed statistical systems, which many developing countries lack. It also aims to help to promote a culture of evidence-based policy-making and monitoring in all countries, especially in poor countries. Paris 21’s initial aim was to help countries to prepare Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) (see poverty) and has now expanded to assist countries to prepare PRSPs as well as Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) reports.
