Proper Allocation of Statistical Functions and Responsibilities of Government Agencies

November 19, 1980

LETTER OF INSTRUCTIONS NO. 1082

WHEREAS, the National Economic and Development Authority as defined in Section 3 of Presidential Decree No. 107 is vested with the function of coordinating statistical activities of all government agencies, formulating statistical standards and methodology, and prescribing their use by government agency as well as preparing the national income accounts; cdt

WHEREAS, LOI No. 521 as amended by LOI No. 732 empowers the National Economic and Development Authority, thru its Statistical Coordination Office, to effect proper allocation of statistical functions and responsibilities to agencies concerned;

WHEREAS, the production and dissemination by government agencies of similar and related statistics through the application of differing techniques, methodologies, concepts and time frames continue and result in confusion among local and international users thereby creating a low level of confidence and credibility of statistics produced in the Philippine Statistical System; casia

WHEREAS, the current system for the Integrated Quarterly Survey of Establishments involving a number of cooperating agencies has not been the most effective arrangement since this has led to confusion and delays in data processing;

WHEREAS, existing statistical resources could be used more efficiently through the elimination of duplicative and unnecessary statistical series including those with very low reliability, and the channeling of such resources to the production of the most useful set of statistics deemed necessary to meet the changing demands of government administrators, planners and policy makers for relevant statistics;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, in order to ensure the efficient and effective use of government statistical resources do hereby order and instruct the following:

1. The collection, processing and dissemination of data on production, employment, earnings and wage rates derived from current surveys of establishments shall be the sole responsibility of the National Census and Statistics Office.

2. The Central Bank of the Philippines (CBP) shall continue to be responsible for monetary and financial statistics. It shall cease to collect and process the following statistical series: (a) indexes of physical volume of production (b) gross sales and/or receipt indexes, (c) indexes of average monthly earnings of salaried employees and of wage earners, (d) employment indexes, (e) wage rate indexes, and (f) money and real wage rates.

3. The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) thru its Statistical Coordination Office (SCO), shall immediately develop a new series of indicators on production, employment, earnings and wage rates and maintain such series until such time as the responsibility for their production can be allocated to the appropriate agencies.

4. The NEDA, thru the SCO, shall determine and effect the proper allocation of functions and responsibilities among government agencies for the production of statistics on food consumption, nutrition, prices, income, health and other statistical series. Such agencies so determined, shall make available from their current resources, the necessary manpower and other requirements to undertake such activities.

5. All government agencies concerned are directed to consult with and obtain clearance from the NEDA prior to the production, publication and dissemination of new statistical series to prevent duplication with existing series and for conformity to standards prescribed by the NEDA.

6. All statistical survey forms and questionnaires shall pass review and clearance by the SCO, NEDA prior to their use in the conduct of any statistical survey.

7. Government agencies such as the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Social Security System (SSS), Board of Investments (BOI) and other agencies which produce statistics as by-products of their administrative and regulatory functions shall, in consultation with the SCO of the NEDA, generate such statistical series as may be deemed useful for planning and policy formulation.

8. The allocation and release of funds by the Ministry of the Budget for statistical activities of agencies shall be in accordance with the spirit and intent of this Order.

9. These orders and instructions shall take effect immediately.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 19th day of November, in the year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty. cd i