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summarised data collected from Upazila offices. The summary tables of basic education
statistics are prepared and disseminated in the district and division. The mission team
discovered these basic statistics in a wall chart.

62. The staffs who are assigned to operate the EMIS software at the district level
are usually persons who have knowledge of and are competent in operating a
computer. They were exploited by senior officials to prepare other administrative tasks
which required use of a computer. In order to establish a functional and operational
EMIS at district level, a dedicated assignment along with a clear term of reference and
authority would be required for those persons. It was created during the previous PEDP-
1 project aimed to enhance the Ministry’s planning tasks. However, at present, functions
of these units are not clear and it seems they require reinforcement in training,
resources and responsibilities.

Post-primary education statistics

63. At the central level, BANBEIS is the central agency whose mandate is to
collect, process, analyse, produce and publish post-primary education statistics. This
bureau is the attached department of MOE but working as a neutral agency for
disseminating education statistics in the country. This bureau has a separate statistics
division headed by a chief and consists of six statisticians and six statistical
investigators (clerk). All officials of the statistics division have a Master’s degree in
statistics and some employees have also received a Master’s degree in statistics. In
terms of experience in the area of education statistics, some of the professionals of this
division have more than twenty five years of experience. Some of them have received
in-country and overseas training. However, further training is needed to be arranged for
these professionals in the field of modern statistical analysis technique and indicators.

64. In the computer section at the EMIS unit, there are seven professionals who
are more or less competent to handle all database management systems developed in
this bureau. Out of seven professionals, six officials have a Master’s degree in statistics
and one in geography. They have respective educational qualifications. Though they
are knowledgeable in database management, they are unable to maintain and adapt the
existing EMIS database in web-based application. Therefore, the professionals of this
unit needed supplementary training in web-based database applications, e-governance
and other modern software applications.

65. Data entry into the database, as required by the MOE, has been carried out
by four computer operators. They are skilled in word processing, spreadsheet analysis
and data entry. Sometimes up to 40 operators are hired during the peak time of data
entry of school census questionnaires and teachers’ personal information.

66. Decentralisation of EMIS tasks for the post-primary sector has yet to be
established at the district level. At present the function of EMIS in the Upazila project
officers under the stipend projects is mostly limited to support the process of data
collection of school census questionnaire.

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