The international production of statistics for developing countries: the case of the United Nations

Econometric interpretations of the effects of modern colonial domination based on colonial statistics, and research questioning the interactions between colonial empires, colonized populations and international institutions, are sparking renewed interest in imperial statistical production. However, little is known about it.

Discover the first session of "Encrypting and deciphering empires, XVIII-XXIth centuries” seminar: "FIDES figures and the development of Cameroon's economy and society" with Raymond Ebalé, professor of contemporary economic history at the University of Yaoundé1 and Ebolowa in Cameroon.

Since the advent of the United Nations (and perhaps long before), the manufacture of statistics has taken on great importance throughout the world. This need for statistical consumption, particularly in developing countries, is driven by economic planning to underpin economic and social growth processes. However, questions about the methods used to produce these data remain, both for the layman and for many of the experts who use them. The aim of this paper is to examine the methodology(ies) used by the United Nations to produce statistics for developing countries. The results show that, due to the weakness of statistical systems in these regions, the reliability of published data is uncertain.