From 17 to 19 August, ESCWA brought together representatives of national statistical offices from across the Arab region for a regional meeting in Istanbul focused on modernizing consumer price statistics and strengthening the production of purchasing power parities (PPPs).
Discussions focused on key priorities shaping the future of price statistics, including digitalization, methodological modernization, the regional implementation of the Harmonized Consumer Price Index (HCPI) and the transition to the Classification of Individual Consumption according to Purpose (COICOP) 2018. Participants also advanced work under the International Comparison Program (ICP), with a focus on improving the quality of survey and national accounts expenditure data and supporting the production of reliable and comparable PPPs for the Arab region.
The meeting provided a valuable platform for strengthening regional cooperation, exchanging national experiences and reinforcing the statistical foundations needed to produce robust, comparable and policy-relevant price statistics.
