1. Cost analysis of key statistical products
Pieter Everaers, Director Eurostat
European Commission
CCSA, Paris
29 September 2016

2. Value and benefits of official statistics
Value defined as 'the importance, worth, or usefulness of something' (source: the Oxford English Dictionary).
The value of official statistics materialises in the trust and confidence that users have in them – societal value.
The value has a material dimension – how much does it cost?

3. Change of environment – new challenges for statistics
The data revolution: a digital transformation is taking place across the globe.
New metrics: globalisation has changed the world.
The future of Europe: the evolution of official statistics as a public good reflects the evolution of the society.
The price of statistics: how to cope with shrinking resources and the need to cut red tape further.

4. Statistics cost money, but then so do bad decisions
How to estimate, manage and reduce these
costs in the production of statistics ?

5. Cost analysis of key statistical products - why
Recent development on Evidence based decision making – importance of official statistics/ resource constraints
Industrial process (new sources) calls for assessing cost/benefits
Justify work done – setting priorities (negative priorities)
Benchmarking (more cost efficient)
Contribution to efficiency gains and development of statistical processes

6. Relevant ESS initiatives and projects
Statistics
Catalogue of statistical
products
Analysis of cost accounting systems in the ESS
Impact assessment of initiatives in the Commission
Cost- analysis of European statistics (by products)
Regulation on European Statistics
223/2009
Income generation survey by UK
Cost assessment of official statistics in the ESS

7. Cost assessment: Output related (=on products)
Legal basis
EU regulations (>350 laws) ; guidelines
Deliverables
Data collections sent by NSIs and ONAs to Eurostat
Dissemination
Published on Eurostat's website
Products cost per product in ESS
cost structure per country

8. Scope of cost assessments initiatives
on 'global' level
Official statistics in the ESS
ongoing
Cost analysis on 'European' cost level– by product
National
European
ongoing
ESS countries
Eurostat
Cost/merit exercise √

9. Two approaches – top down and bottom up
Cost assessment of the production of official
statistics in ESS covers national and European
statistics
Bottom up:
Cost analysis of European statistics (by products)
For both : Same methodology used.
Coverage: NSIs, ONAs and regional offices.

10. Cost assessment of official statistics in the ESS
Top down approach
Cost assessment of official statistics in the ESS
Scope Coverage Methodology
National NSIs reference years:
statistics ONAs
Regional offices - accrual principal
European costs and FTE
statistics
Goal to have an ESS picture by mid-2017

11. European statistics' costs in ESS

12. Relevant ESS initiatives and projects
Statistics
Catalogue of statistical
products
Analysis of cost accounting systems in the ESS
Impact assessment of initiatives in the Commission
Cost- analysis of European statistics (by products)
Regulation on European Statistics
223/2009
Income generation survey by UK
Cost assessment of official statistics in the ESS

13. European statistics - Phase 1 Estimated 2014 direct costs in Eurostat
Bottom up approach
Cost-merit exercise
European statistics - Phase 1 Estimated 2014 direct costs in Eurostat
Multi domain indicators
Accounting systems
Primary data and indicators
11 mio euro
74 FTE
28 mio euro
109 FTE
43 mio euro
228 FTE
3 mio euro
Partnership within the ESS and beyond
16 FTE

14. European statistics - Phase 1 Estimated total costs in Eurostat,2014
Cost-merit exercise
HR in FTE
Costs in Eurostat
Sub delegated
Direct costs
427
84 mio €
27 mio €
Indirect costs
316
65 mio €
8 mio €
Total costs
743
150 mio €
34 mio €

15. European statistics - Phase 1 Merit assessment in Eurostat
Cost-merit exercise
European statistics - Phase 1 Merit assessment in Eurostat
Global assessment on products by three focus groups on the following criteria:
Policy use
Legal requirements
Competitive advantage
Quality
Multi-purpose statistics
Applying a 15/70/15 distribution for high/medium/ low merits
Merge the cost information with the results of the merit exercise – focus on products with high costs but low merits

16. European statistics - Phase 2 Costs on European statistics in the ESS
by products
Resources in NSIs, ONAs, regional offices
For European statistics only; for the year 2015
Second step
with 25 products and all ESS countries
First step
with 11 countries on 8
products;
establishing
methodology

17. European statistics – Product list
The list ('Catalogue of products') covers more than 130 statistical products. It is annexed to the Annual Work Programme.
Statistical products – examples:
Annual national accounts
Foreign direct investment
Regional accounts
Environmental taxes
Business demography
Innovation
International trade in goods
Demography and migration
Education
Health care

18. European statistics' costs in ESS,
by products
28 Member states, 4 EFTA countries, Eurostat
NSI : National Statistical Institutes.
ONA: Other national statistical authorities.

19. Challenges encountered
Different accounting systems in place in MSs
- Lack of time registration system
Definition of 'official' statistics
Partners' involvement in the production of official statistics (NSIs, ONAs, regional offices)
Role of Central banks
Agreement on a common methodology

20. Benefit of cost assessment
Contributes to resource allocation, cost
transparency and priority-setting
Motivates discussions on how to manage and
reduce these costs in the production of
statistics
Use of cost information for benchmarking

21. Thank you for your attention!