GCC regional workshop calls for unified efforts to strengthen child statistics

Muscat, October 27, 2026 – The first Regional Workshop on Improving Child Statistics in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries opens today in Muscat, organised by the Statistical Centre for the Cooperation Council for the Arab Countries of the Gulf (GCC-Stat) in partnership with UNICEF, from 27 to 29 October. The workshop is held under the patronage of Her Highness Sayyida Dr Mona bint Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said, Assistant Vice-Chancellor for International Cooperation at Sultan Qaboos University and Chairperson of Children First Association. It aims to unify statistical efforts across the GCC to build an integrated system of data and indicators on children that is accurate, comprehensive and comparable across countries, and to lay the groundwork for a joint GCC plan for developing child statistics.

“Building the future of our societies begins with improving children’s wellbeing and developing their capabilities. This calls for effective policies based on accurate and comprehensive data that show children’s circumstances and needs, and measure how far they benefit from the services and programmes designed for them.”

H.E. Intisar bint Abdullah Al Wahaibi, Director General of GCC-Stat

H.E. Al Wahaibi notes that children under the age of 15 make up nearly a fifth of the GCC’s population of close to 62 million, around 13 million children, a number the United Nations projects will rise to around 16 million by 2044. She explains that the challenge goes beyond the availability of data to differences in definitions, levels of disaggregation and release timing, and the need to integrate data sources and turn data into knowledge that can be used in planning. She adds that GCC-Stat will continue to coordinate with national statistical offices, child-focused institutions, UNICEF and other partners to identify priority indicators and make child statistics more consistent and comparable across the region.

“The ultimate purpose of data is to improve the lives of a nation’s citizens. As countries advance their national visions and development agendas, it becomes increasingly important to ensure that children are visible within monitoring frameworks. Children are often among the first to be affected by economic, social, technological or environmental change, making child-sensitive indicators essential for long-term planning.”

H.E. Sumaira Chowdhury, UNICEF Representative in Oman

H.E. Chowdhury highlights the role of strong child data systems in monitoring child rights and wellbeing and identifying the children most in need, and notes that UNICEF’s Minimum Data Package for Children can help GCC countries identify priority data gaps and strengthen the comparability of child indicators. She expresses the hope that the workshop’s recommendations will feed into discussions at the upcoming UN World Data Forum in Riyadh.

Over three days, participants will discuss ways to unify statistical concepts, definitions and methodologies, and to develop a common framework of core indicators that GCC countries can produce regularly, drawing on international standards while reflecting national contexts. Proposed areas include health and nutrition; education and learning; social protection; protection from violence and neglect; living conditions; disability; and children’s psychosocial wellbeing.

Towards a GCC child data portal

The workshop will also look at integrating administrative records, sectoral data and household surveys to reduce duplication and close data gaps, while respecting data governance and privacy requirements for children’s data. Participants will explore how to turn data into usable evidence to guide resource allocation, measure gaps across age groups and geographic areas, and assess the impact of programmes for children.

Discussions will also cover a proposed GCC Child Data Portal, a single reference platform for child-related indicators, reports and studies, along with interactive dashboards that make comparable data easier to access for decision-makers, researchers and institutions working with children.