India will host the Meeting of Heads of National Statistical Offices (NSOs) of BRICS countries in Lucknow from August 3 to 4, bringing together senior statistical officials from member nations to strengthen cooperation in official statistics, innovation and data dissemination.
The meeting will be held under India’s BRICS Chairship 2026, which is guided by the overarching theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability (BRICS).” Under the BRICS Statistics Track, India has adopted the theme “Quality Statistics as Driver of Change,” highlighting its focus on data quality, innovation, effective dissemination and people-centric statistical systems.
According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the meeting will bring together representatives from Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to further strengthen cooperation in the dissemination of statistics through BRICS publications, innovation in statistical systems and the exchange of knowledge and best practices.
The Ministry said modern policymaking within BRICS increasingly depends on reliable and harmonised statistics to monitor development, guide policy decisions and promote mutual understanding among member countries. Since 2010, BRICS nations have jointly published the Joint Statistical Publication (JSP), while the Snapshot BRICS JSP, introduced in 2020, provides accessible and harmonised statistical data for policymakers, researchers and the public.
Over the years, statistical cooperation among BRICS countries has evolved beyond basic data collection to include greater alignment on statistical standards, data harmonisation and innovation. Two major events are organised annually under the BRICS Statistics Track—the Technical Meeting of National Statistical Offices and the Meeting of Heads of National Statistical Offices.
The Technical Meeting was held on April 16-17, 2026, during which member countries discussed the preparation of the Joint Statistical Publication 2026 and the Snapshot BRICS JSP 2026. The discussions focused on developing a mutually agreed framework, allocating responsibilities and establishing timelines for contributions from each participating National Statistical Office.
The BRICS Statistics Track is expected to deliver outcomes across several priority areas, including strengthening the Joint Statistical Publication and Snapshot BRICS, promoting innovation and reforms in national statistical systems, improving data dissemination and accessibility, and enhancing macroeconomic and sectoral statistics.
Alongside the main meeting, two half-day side events will also be organised with the participation of officials from National Statistical Offices, policymakers, academia, think tanks, civil society organisations and technical experts.
The first side event, scheduled for August 3, will focus on “Unlocking the Potential of Administrative Data,” while the second, on August 4, will discuss “AI Readiness in the Evolving Data Ecosystem,” exploring the role of artificial intelligence in strengthening official statistical systems.