The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has concluded a five-day regional training workshop on Statistical Leadership and Management for managers of National Statistical Systems (NSS) from ECOWAS Member States and Mauritania, with calls for stronger NSSs, enhanced regional cooperation and improved statistical governance.

Held from the 5^th to 9^th of October 2026 in Monrovia, Liberia, the training strengthened leadership and management capacities within National Statistical Systems to improve the coordination of statistical activities and support the production and dissemination of reliable, high-quality and timely statistical data across the region. The workshop was organised under the World Bank-funded Project for the Harmonising and Improving of Statistics in West and Central Africa (HISWACA).

In his closing remarks, Mr. Samson Bel-Aube NOUGBODOHOUE, Director of Research and Statistics at the ECOWAS Commission, thanked participants for their active engagement and contributions throughout the training. He encouraged them to share the knowledge and skills acquired with their respective teams upon returning to their countries, thereby extending the benefits of the training to their national statistical institutions. He also made a special vote of thanks to the Government and People of Liberia for their steadfast support for the successful of the workshop, particularly to the Director General and the staff of Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-information Services.

The workshop’s deliberations culminated in recommendations urging Member States to strengthen strategic leadership, safeguard the professional independence of statistical institutions, improve managerial capacities and coordination among statistical producers, and accelerate the elaboration and implementation of national statistical quality-assurance frameworks. Participants also emphasised the responsible use of artificial intelligence to produce official statistics, the diversification of data sources, and stronger communication strategies to promote wider use of statistical data.

ECOWAS was encouraged to support these efforts through capacity-building on generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), regular regional exchanges of experience and good practices, the translation of international statistical guidelines into Community languages, and technical assistance and peer reviews to improve statistical quality assurance. Participants also recommended establishing a regional committee to ensure that the Community’s perspectives are adequately represented in international statistical decision-making.

The workshop brought together representatives of National Statistical Systems from ECOWAS Member States and Mauritania, alongside regional institutions, including the West African Monetary Institute (WAMI), the West African Monetary Agency (WAMA) and the Economic and Statistical Observatory of Sub-Saharan Africa (AFRISTAT). The training concluded with the presentation of certificates to participants.