**Summary:**
On July 16, 2025, a bilateral meeting was held between the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), Government of India, and a delegation from the Republic of Indonesia at Khurshid Lal Bhawan, New Delhi. The Indonesian delegation was led by His Excellency Dr. Sonny Harry B. Harmadi, Vice Minister of Statistics, and included Her Excellency Ms. Ina H. Krisnamurthi, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to India and Bhutan, along with other senior officials. The Indian delegation was headed by Dr. Saurabh Garg, Secretary, MoSPI, comprising senior Ministry officials.
The primary objective of the meeting was to explore collaboration opportunities in key areas of Official Statistics. Indonesia sought insights into India's GDP methodology, implementation of AI in official statistics, modernization of official statistics, approaches to data integration, and strategies for transforming the National Statistical System.
Key discussion points included statistical reforms undertaken by MoSPI, such as the use of technology in surveys, reduction of time lag in report releases, harmonization of official datasets, and the potential of alternative data sources. Indonesia expressed interest in learning from India's practices in GDP estimation, harmonization of official data sets, modernization of statistical systems, and quality assurance frameworks. Potential areas of collaboration identified were harmonization of trade statistics, digitization of agriculture data, and enhancement of IT and advanced sampling methods for statistical development.
Both countries affirmed their commitment to strengthening statistical capacity through faculty development programs, exchange of expertise, and cooperation through formal MoUs, bilateral/trilateral agreements, and dialogue. Shri P.R. Meshram, Director General Data Governance, MoSPI, emphasized the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation and leveraging technological innovations.
Contact information for further inquiries: SamratAllen : Pibmospiatgmaildotcom; Release ID: 2145568.
Key Entities Referenced
Republic of Indonesia: The country that sent a delegation to India for a bilateral meeting regarding statistics.
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation: The Indian government ministry, also known as MoSPI, that held a bilateral meeting with Statistics, Indonesia.
Statistics, Indonesia: The statistical agency of the Republic of Indonesia that participated in a bilateral meeting with MoSPI.
New Delhi: The city in India where the bilateral meeting between MoSPI and the Indonesian delegation took place.
Dr. Sonny Harry B. Harmadi: Vice Minister of Statistics, Republic of Indonesia, who led the Indonesian delegation.
Dr. Saurabh Garg: Secretary, MoSPI, who headed the Indian delegation at the bilateral meeting.
National Statistical System: India's system for collecting, processing, and disseminating official statistics, which was discussed during the meeting.
Harmonization of Trade Statistics: An area of collaboration in statistics that the Government of Indonesia expressed interest in during the meeting.
Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation
MoSPI held bilateral meeting with Statistics,
Indonesia on 16 July 2025
Posted On: 17 JUL 2025 5:45PM by PIB Delhi
A bilateral meeting was convened between Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI),
Government of India and a delegation from Republic of Indonesia on 16.07.2025 at Khurshid Lal Bhawan,
Janpath, New Delhi.
The Indonesian delegation was led by His Excellency Dr. Sonny Harry B. Harmadi, Vice Minister of
Statistics, Republic of Indonesia and included Her Excellency Ms. Ina H. Krisnamurthi, Ambassador of the
Republic of Indonesia to India and Bhutan along with other senior officials from the Government of
Indonesia. Dr. Saurabh Garg, Secretary, MoSPI headed the Indian delegation comprising of senior Ministry
officials.
The Indonesian delegation wanted to understand and explore collaboration opportunities in several key areas
of Official Statistics, inter-alia, understanding the dedicated GDP methodology with a focus on data
collection, data consistency and productivity statistics; current implementation of AI in official statistics at
NSO India and strategies for AI-ready data; the steps taken by MoSPI to modernize Official Statistics;
approaches to integrating data from various Departments/Ministries/State Governments; and the key
challenges and opportunities in transforming India’s National Statistical System.
The meeting commenced with a welcome address by Shri P. R. Meshram, Director General (Data
Governance), MoSPI, who underscored the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation, leveraging
technological innovations, and pursuing excellence in statistical systems and practices.
In his address, Dr. Saurabh Garg, Secretary, MoSPI, highlighted various initiatives undertaken by the
Ministry with respect to statistical reforms, such as the use of technology in surveys, reduction of time lag in
release of reports, the harmonization of official datasets and the potential of alternative data sources. He also
emphasized the significance of the engagement and welcomed this exchange of ideas between the two
countries in the field of official statistics.
During the proceedings, His Excellency Dr. Sonny Harry B. Harmadi, Vice Minister of Statistics of the
Republic of Indonesia, expressed a keen interest in gaining insights from India on key statistical challenges
currently faced by Indonesia, particularly in areas where India has demonstrated effective practices, such as
GDP estimation, harmonization of official data sets, the modernization of statistical systems and quality
assurance framework.
The Government of Indonesia expressed its interest in collaboration in the area which inter-alia includes,
Harmonization of Trade Statistics, Digitization of Agriculture data and enhancement of IT and Advance
Sampling Methods for Statistical Development, etc.The meeting provided an important platform for charting out the possible area of knowledge exchange and to
reaffirm the mutual commitment of both countries to strengthening statistical capacity through faculty
development programme, exchange of expertise and cooperation through formal MoU (bilateral/trilateral) and
dialogue.
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Samrat/Allen : Pibmospi[at]gmail[dot]com
(Release ID: 2145568)