Session 1 Quality assessment of national accounts data

1
Session 1 Quality assessment of national
accounts data

• Workshop on national accounts for Asian member
  countries of the organization of Islamic
  Conference
• Ankara, Turkey 1-2 December 2008
• byDevi ManrajIMF Regional statistics
  advisordevimanraj_at_gmail.com

2
Good quality national accounts statistics

• Importance of national accounts in the system of
  macroeconomic statistics
• 1993 SNA provides conceptual framework for all
  macroeconomic statistics
• Balance of payments
• Monetary and financial statistics
• Government finance statistics
• Timely, accurate and reliable statistics in line
  with the United Nations Principles of official
  Statistics
• High quality macroeconomic statistics to produce
  sound economic and monetary policies

3
Why implement the 1993 SNA?

• To use internationally accepted recommendations
  and standards
• To ensure consistency among the macroeconomic
  statistics
• To enable cross-country and inter-temporal
  comparisons using same concept of
• Residency
• Classification
• Recording and valuation of stocks and flows

4

What are the constraints to implement 1993 SNA?

• Absence of a supportive legal framework
• Lack of skill and expertise in national
  accounting
• Inadequate financial and technical resources
• Lack of self confidence in staff officers
• Absence of leadership

5
What should be done?

• Strengthen the legislation for NSOs to oversee
  and coordinate the national statistical system
• Secure high level political commitment
• Mobilize adequate human and financial resources
• Request for technical assistance to improve
  methodology
• Build self confidence of staff
• Maintain trust and confidence in national
  accounts statistics

6

What should be done ? (continued)

• Provide training and have a pool of trainers in
  national accounting methodology
• Develop analytical skill of staff to interpret
  data
• Encourage countries to join the Fund General Data
  Dissemination System (GDDS)
• Encourage GDDS members to subscribe to the Fund
  Special Data Dissemination Standards (SDDS).
• For National Accounts is GDP and so much more .!!

7

Assessment of quality of national accounts

• All countries broadly follow the 1993 system of
  national accounts
• For example, some countries
• Are still using the 1968 SNA terminology , not
  recording transactions at basic prices, not using
  international classification of activities and
  products
• Do not regularly prepare GDP by the expenditure
  approach and do not use the Supply and Use Table
  framework
• Do not have a data collection strategy- sample
  surveys/economic census/household expenditure
  survey/labur force survey
• Do not have a systematic compilation/processing
  system
• Do not document national accounting methodology

8
IMF Framework for assessment of data quality

• IMFs Data Quality Assessment Framework (DQAF)
  2003,
• To assess
• Quality of the statistical institution
• Quality of the process
• Quality of the statistical product

9
For more details ..

• IMFs Data Standards Bulletin Board
  (http//dsbb.imf.org/)
• Focus Dissemination of information describing a
  countrys current dissemination and compilation
  procedures for economic and social statistics and
  plans in place for their improvement.
• IMFs Reports on Observance of Standards and
  Codes (http//www.imf.org/external/np/rosc/index.h
  tm)
• Focus Broad assessment of the quality of
  statistics based on current dissemination and
  compilation procedures and plans for their
  improvement.
• IMFs Framework Data quality Assessment framework
  (DQAF)at
• http//dsbb.imf.org/dqrsindex.htm)