It is now recognized internationally as home truth that better statistics are an essential part of an enabling environment for development. Better statistics do (or should) lead to better policies and development outcomes. The World Banks 2004 World Development Report (Making Services Available to the Poor) places strong emphasis on the role better information systems can play in improving the quality of services to the poor - as a stimulant to public action, a catalyst for change and an input into making other reforms work. However, according to a PARIS21 (Partnerships in Statistics for Development in the 21st Century) pamphlet, in many of the poorest countries, statistics are weak and policy-makers seldom use them, leading to poor decisions and poor outcomes. Indeed in many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, National Statistical Systems (NSSs) are trapped in a vicious cycle of statistical under-development where limited statistical awareness and limited appreciation of statistics by policy and decision-makers at different levels and across society has led to sustained under-funding for statistics. This has in turn led to limited organizational and institutional development, which in turn has led to under-performance of statistical agencies - limited statistical outputs and services in terms of quantity, scope, type and quality. Under-performance has in turn led to less demand for statistics and minimal resource allocation for their production.