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Resources and Funding of
Official Statistics
Olav Ljones
SADC Work Shop 2- 6 Dec 2006, Luanda
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Why planning ?
• Characteristic of the output – official statistics
• Quality declaration
• Timely and punctual, Follow the release calendar
• Stability over time,
• Internal consistence, coherence, etc
• To run a NSO is a strict (military like) operation
• But also be user oriented, relevant, catch new trends ,
• Combine running operations with development
• We need to be like Superman or Spiderman, to balance
costs and revenues
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The need for resources
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Adequate level and stability and sustainable resources a prerequisite for
official statistics.
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Remember: Official statistics should be a pure public good
The possible sources:
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Government centralized budget
Decentralized Government budget, from several ministries (Swedish model)
Project financing, user financing, market financing
International transfers
 General transfers
 In kind transfers, projects like official statistics
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The financing of centralized and decentralized statistical systems raise
different challenges.
– Other institutions may be rich like the Central Bank
– Statistics may loose in internal priority when it Is not the primary objective
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Comparison UN 10 Fundamental principles and
EU Code of practice.
• UN Fundamental Principles. Only obligations and quality
claims, nothing is said about resources.
• The rather new Eurostat Code of Practice for ESS
(European Statistical system).
• Principle 3 Adequacy of resources.
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Code of practice: Principle 3
• The resources available to Statistics authorities must be
sufficient to meet European statistics requirements.
• Indicators:
– Staff financial and computing resources, adequate both in
magnitude and in quality, are available to meet current European
statistics needs.
– The scope, detail and cost of European statistics are commensurate
with needs.
– Procedures exists to assess and justify demands for new European
statistics against their costs.
– Procedures exists to assess the continuing need for all European
statistics, to see if any can be discontinued or curtailed to free up
resources.
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Principle 10: Cost effectiveness
• Resources must be effectively used
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The yearly work plan, the need for full integration
of planning and budgeting
• Invest in a integrated planning and budgeting system
• Elements. Costs for existing staff, housing etc
• Distribute resources to projects.
– Operating existing statistics, to fulfill the release calendar etc
– Planning, development of new statistics
 International obligations
 Existing development plans, like a new census new NA
 New ideas – totally new projects
 Cost reducing or improved quality of ongoing statistics
• Other cost, IT equipment, House-rent.
• Identify high priority projects with lack of resources
• Balancing revenues and costs. Manpower adjustments.
• The search for new financial resources
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Considerations
• Maximize budget? No considerations?
• If revenues are not stable – how to adapt to yearly
variations?
• Financing from users?
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Who are willing to pay for a public good?
Private sector ?
Government?
International sources?
The need for a transparent pricing policy.
Cover (marginal costs) and no cross subsidizing
Transparency toward the public about user financing
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Considerations 2
• Is there a tradeoff between independency and financing
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from users?
The positive effect from user financing. Improved user
contact. Introduce incentives and New Public Management
thinking in the NSO.
Potential Crowding out. External financed project may have
crowding out of projects in master plan with high priority, as
a result.
Potential negative effects of a too complex financial model,
building a consistent coherent official statistical system,
reuse of data etc is a complete and complex matrix
operation. Internal pricing should be avoided.
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How to integrate international resources in the
work with budgets and plans?
• Yearly and long term plans. The need for a Master plan and
long term visions.
• Ask for international commitments based on the Master
plan.
• Twinning arrangements?
• The need for improved donor coordination.
• Should international resources be used both for running of
permanent statistics, and for development of new and big
projects as census?
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