PRESS RELEASE

OFFICE OF THE ACTING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Data from the World Values Survey for Puerto Rico revealed

54% of people do not leave their house at night as a security measure

In Puerto Rico, family is the most important aspect (94%), followed by work (70%), free time (66%) and religion (65%). These are some of the data reflected in the recent World Values Survey for Puerto Rico carried out by a team of professors and students from the University of the Sacred Heart, led by Dr. Javier Hernández, director of the Department of Business Administration of Sagrado, and supported by the Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico. The study was revealed at the Forum and presentation on the World Values Survey for Puerto Rico 2018, at the Sacred Heart University, where a panel of renowned experts in different areas analyzed and commented on the results.

The World Values Survey is an instrument that allows the development of statistics on the ethical, social, economic and political values of Puerto Ricans, as well as the assessment of their daily lives, civic and governmental institutions, and their connection with the world of work, their families and their communities. This survey provides an opportunity to address the nature of social capital in Puerto Rico vis-a-vis the rest of the world and, therefore, to know what the people are prepared to do and what they need to plan their development as a social, economic and cultural collective.

One of the relevant data from this study points out that the majority of people in Puerto Rico (91%) consider themselves quite happy or very happy. However, despite the fact that 85% understand that their neighborhood is very safe or quite safe, 71% avoid carrying a lot of cash and 54% do not leave their house at night, as a security measure. On the other hand, only a minority thinks that most people can be trusted (18%).

The study also reveals that a majority has no interest in politics (52%) and would not vote for any political party and only for independent candidates (54%). In 2001, the percentage that showed no interest in politics represented 28%.

For the lead author of the study, Dr. Javier Hernández, “The World Values Survey is a valuable tool that will allow us to compare results with over 60 countries. It is part of the efforts to make Puerto Rico part of the main international indicators and to support institutional decision-making. The survey addresses issues of great relevance to the government, academia, the third sector and civil society, so we invite all sectors to analyze their results.”

“The return of Puerto Rico to the World Values Survey represents an important effort, since it allows us to continue with the recommendation of the Institute of Statistics to make Puerto Rico part of the main indicators at the global level. In the same way, this project represents a vital source of information to contribute to the culture of evidence-based decision-making. This is valuable information about our values, beliefs and political culture, among other information, necessary to guide public policy decisions. The survey results have a multisectoral scope, which is key for different levels of government, the non-governmental sector and the academy,” said Dr. Orville M. Disdier, acting executive director of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics.

The Sacred Heart University, established in 1880 by the religious order of the Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, is a Catholic, private, non-profit institution that promotes a unique and innovative educational project in an environment characterized by excellent community life. The University offers associate degrees, baccalaureates, combined degrees, master's degrees, post-baccalaureate certificates and collaborative agreements with other universities in and outside of Puerto Rico. The academic offer focuses on the areas of Business Administration, Natural Sciences, Communication, Nursing and Humanities-Social Sciences.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access.

For more information or to access the 2018 World Values Survey for Puerto Rico you can visit the website: https://estadisticas.pr.gov/ or through the social networks of Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico).

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Press Contacts:

Lourdes Burgos/787-562-2932/ lburgos@upfrontpr.net

Idia Martinez/787-603-3200/ imartinez@upfrontpr.net

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Statistics Institute publishes the Statistical Compendium on Higher Education in Puerto Rico: Year 2020-2021

As in the previous year, enrollment continued to decline in Puerto Rico's post-secondary university education system in 2020-2021. This publication includes a new section on “Students enrolled in distance education courses by sector”. Access the report in its entirety through the following link: Statistical Compendium of Higher Education (IPEDS)

Demographic Registry complies with the order of publishing mortality data

The action paves the way for greater transparency than

It saves lives after future hurricanes in Puerto Rico

San Juan, PR, August 30, 2018 — The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute (Institute) announced today that the Demographic Registry has begun to comply with the Resolution No. 2018-03 of the Board of Directors of the Institute for the purpose of disseminating a set of data (Dataset) which contains preliminary information on deaths, which will be updated weekly on the open data platform managed by the Institute.

The Institute's Board of Directors had ordered this disclosure as a “measure of transparency” in the face of concerns raised last year regarding deaths that occurred after the passage of hurricanes Irma and María.

The released dataset contains information for each recorded death, which occurred from January 1, 2017 to the most recent week. It includes information on causes of death, month of death, place of residence, place of birth, type of death, sex, marital status, age, education level, occupation, industry, veteran status, and more.

This can be downloaded from the Institute's new open data platform, available here: https://datos.estadisticas.pr/dataset/defunciones-registradas-hasta-la-semana-pasada. The platform also allows you to preview the data and also allows you to develop applications that connect to the data set automatically through the use of Application Programming Interface (API).

Although the Resolution of the Board of Directors mandates that this data set be updated daily, the Department of Health and the Institute of Statistics agreed to update it weekly, as long as there is no emergency declaration. If an emergency is declared in the future, the Demographic Registry will be updating the data daily, to facilitate the analysis of these data that can save lives. In fact, this protocol should be included in the Department of Health's next Emergency Plan.

“Right now, more than ever, it has become evident the importance of the accessibility of statistical data to determine trends during specific times or phenomena, resulting in more assertive responses to an emergency. The certainty and transparency of this type of information could make the difference between life and death. Both the Department of Health and Governor Ricardo Rosselló's administration have always promoted free access to information, especially at a time when we seek to perfect every aspect of our contingency plans for times of emergency. This initiative, which unites the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics and the Demographic Registry, points in that direction. We are pleased that it is materializing and that steps are being taken in the data collection process, for the benefit of Puerto Rican citizens,” said the Secretary of Health, Dr. Rafael Rodríguez Mercado.

For his part, the Executive Director of the Institute, Dr. Mario Marazzi-Santiago, stressed: “The Department of Health's mortality statistics take a long time to prepare and publish. The newly published data help to perceive mortality in the short term, without the extensive purification protocol required by official statistics. In this way, we demonstrate our Government's commitment to transparency, and we are also preparing to respond more quickly to the mortality that may occur after the next hurricane. The data will be available even if there is no regular electric power service in Puerto Rico. This disclosure literally saves lives. It's the least we can do to recognize and honor the memory of the thousands of people who died as a result of Hurricane Maria.”

The announcement opens the way for the filing of a lawsuit that the Institute had filed in May of this year to force the Department of Health to provide this data on a recurring basis in order to comply with Resolution No. 2018-03 of the Institute's Board of Directors. In accordance with its Organic Law, the Institute has the power to demand or require from any governmental body the information or data it deems necessary for statistical purposes.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access. The Institute has in its inventory, accessible through www.estadisticas.pr.gov, about 300 statistical products. In addition, it is a custodian and provides access to over 100 data sets or “data sets” through www.data.pr.gov and to over 40 tables and more than 6 thousand indicators through: www.indicadores.pr.

In addition, as the leading entity of the SDC in Puerto Rico, the Institute manages the SDC portal, which contains the main statistical reports and publications of the U.S. Census Bureau on Puerto Rico, specifically those that are most in demand, such as annual population estimates; the Puerto Rico Community Survey (Puerto Rico Community Survey) and official statistics on Puerto Rico's 10-year population and housing censuses, among others. The Puerto Rico SDC portal can be accessed through: https://censo.estadisticas.pr/.

For more information you can visit our website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. In addition, you can follow us on social networks through Facebook accounts (statistics.pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico).

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Press Contact: Sandra Morales Blanes/(787) 688-0401

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