The United Nations on Friday announced the establishment of an independent advisory group to advise UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on how to close data gaps among 193 UN member states and strengthen national statistical capacities.

"Today the United Nations announced the establishment of an Independent Expert Advisory Group on the Data Revolution for Sustainable Development," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here. "This group will advise the secretary- general on measures that need to be taken to close data gaps and to strengthen national statistical capacities."

"The secretary-general said that the data revolution is giving the world powerful tools that can help usher in a more sustainable future," he said. "The new group is expected to submit its recommendations to the secretary-general this fall."

"The data revolution is giving the world powerful tools that can help usher in a more sustainable future," Ban said in a statement. "The recommendations of the group will be important inputs to the post-2015 debate and our efforts to shape an ambitious yet achievable vision."

The 26-member advisory group is also expected to assess new opportunities linked to innovation, technical progress and the surge of new public and private data providers to support conventional statistical systems and strengthen accountability at the global, regional and national level.

The group is part of the secretary-general's efforts to prepare the Synthesis Report that member states have asked him to issue ahead of the intergovernmental negotiations leading to the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda. Endite

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