National Advisory Council on Statistics

Head

n/a

Role

Chair (Planning Adviser or Planning Minister, ex officio)

Annual budget

n/a

Staff

n/a

Established

2021

Legal basis

Established by approval of the Prime Minister and notified via Cabinet Division gazette notification dated 12 January 2021; not created by a specific section of the Statistics Act 2013 (Act No. XII of 2013), though the Act mandates BBS as the coordinator of the National Statistical System. The body was renamed from the originally planned National Statistics Coordination Council (NSCC) to NACS by a BBS and SID management decision in 2020.

The National Advisory Council on Statistics is currently focused on transitioning the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics toward greater institutional independence and transparency while maintaining non-partisan oversight of national data production.

The NACS is a real, documented body, confirmed by two independent primary sources (World Bank ISR and The Daily Star). It was originally planned as the 'National Statistics Coordination Council (NSCC)' but renamed NACS in 2020 by BBS and SID management before gazette notification (World Bank ISR, P1579870). It was gazetted 12 January 2021 under Prime Minister approval and a Cabinet Division notification -- not under a specific section of the Statistics Act 2013. First meeting: 27 June 2021; second meeting: 6 April 2022 (World Bank ISR). The World Bank's NSDS Implementation Support Project (P157987) supported its establishment as a target indicator. The council was restructured in April 2024 after the 12th parliamentary election: the planning adviser heads a 17-member body comprising the Bangladesh Bank governor, NBR chairman, DG of the Department of Agricultural Extension, DG of BIDS, DG of BBS, president of FBCCI, and chairs of the economics and statistics departments of Dhaka University; meetings are biannual (The Daily Star, 3777816). The April 2024 restructuring notification was issued by the Cabinet Division. No public evidence found of NACS reconstitution, chair appointment, or meeting under the BNP-Tarique government (sworn 17 February 2026) as of 17 May 2026. current_head is null because no gazette or press record identifies who currently chairs NACS under the new government; the role is ex officio for the Planning Minister or Planning Adviser. head_since is null for the same reason. name_bn is null: no Bangla official name found in primary sources. established_year set to 2021 (gazette date). The proposed 'Trust and Transparency Council of Statistics' and 'Methodological Advisory Council' (from the September 2025 taskforce report) are reform proposals, not enacted bodies, and are distinct from NACS. parent_id_ref is 'Statistics and Informatics Division' (SID); BBS coordinates the NACS operationally but SID is the parent division. verification_status is 'partial': the body's existence, gazette date, mandate, and April 2024 composition are confirmed by 2+ independent primary sources, but the current chair, head_since date, and operational status under the BNP government are unconfirmed.