1. Quality assurance in official statistics
High Level Seminar for EECCA countries entitled Quality in Statistics: Metadata, GEORGİA, 2012
Quality assurance in official statistics
of the Republic of Azerbaijan:
conceptual approach
Rauf Salimov,
Deputy Chairman,
State Statistical Committee
of the Republic of Azerbaijan

2. NATIONAL QUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORK
Managing the statistical system
Managing the institutional environment
Managing statistical processes
Managing statistical outputs

3. Managing the statistical system
1.1 Coordination
Centralized system and independent organization
Law on Official Statistics
The role in coordinating is legislated
Preparing the annual Statistical Work
Programmes
Adopted four long-term State Programmes
The application of statistical work in the country is compulsory
Acts the Statistical Council
Entering into agreements with other
government organizations on data exchange

4. 1.2 Relationships with data users and data providers
Managing the statistical system
1.2 Relationships with data users
and data providers
Periodic discussions with stakeholders and
identifying their requirements
The State Statistical Committee
represents in working groups
Intensive cooperation with media
Evaluation the main range of users’ interests
(Top items)
Strategic documents submitted for public
discussion before adoption
Data users and data providers are informing about the changes

5. Managing the statistical system
1.3 Statistical standards
Applying the all international classifications
Applying the 2008 SNA
SSC takes active participation as member of
expert groups of international organizations
in the preparing of statistical standards
(7 experts)
Discussing the standards and making
appropriate decisions
Ensuring of standards applying

6. 2.1 Professional independence
2.Managing the institutional environment
2.1 Professional independence
Inadmissibility of interference specified in Law
SSC chairman status equated to the status of
minister
SSC takes independent decisions regarding the
statistical outputs publishing
Regularly publishing the Statistical Work
Programme
Conducted procedures for preventing misuse of
statistical data

7. 2.2 Impartiality and objectivity
2.Managing the institutional environment
2.2 Impartiality and objectivity
The SSC has Code of Practice and follow up
A release calendar which announces data and
press releases publishing made known in advance
to users, respected their publication in the specified
time
Detected errors are corrected timely
Administrative regulations on process of data
access are in place
Presented information on data and metadata
sources

8. 2.3 Transparency 2.Managing the institutional environment
Information about statistical activity available to
the public
Information about the processes and metadata
available on website
Standards on data dissemination policy are in place
Information on statistics’ budget is publicly available
Statements in the media are regularly held

9. 2.4 Confidentiality 2. Managing the institutional environment
Data confidentiality is fixed and guaranteed by
law
The staff signs legal confidentiality
agreements
Liability for breaching confidentiality
The technical and organizational measures to
protect data are in place
The rules for the use of microdata for research
are in place

10. 2.5 Quality commitment 2. Managing the institutional environment
Quality policy and objectives are determined
The Coordinating Council was set up
The quality representative is appointed
Created division responsible for quality
The collection of documents on quality is prepared
Approved and implemented the action plan for the period
There is a section on quality in the forthcoming five-year
State Programme
Regularly held trainings
Global Assessment by Eurostat, UNECE, EFTA and
monitoring by IMF on price statistics have been carried out

11. 2.6 Adequacy of resources 2. Managing the institutional environment
The sufficiency of financial resources allocated
for the implementation of statistical activities
High availability of information technology
Acquisition of new software products, created
information systems, applied on-line system for
data collection

12. 3. Managing statistical processes
3.1 Assuring methodological soundness
The applied methodologies are based on
international practice
Changes in methodology are accompanied by
documented procedures
Documents prior to their adoption, discussed
by the Scientific and Methodological Council
Designing the organizational plan of statistical
observations
The methodological documents for data
editing, evaluating and descriptive statistics
are in place

13. 3. Managing statistical processes
3.2 Assuring cost-effectiveness
The costs of survey are regularly monitored
Regularly reduce the respondent burden
Expanding the scope of applying ICT
Observation are gradually replaced by the
survey
Indicators that are available on the basis of
administrative data evaluated without the
observation

14. 3. Managing statistical processes
3.3 Assuring soundness of implementation
Applied electronic document management
system
Designing the methodological work plans
Quarterly work plans developed by each division
The processes are continuously automated and
documented
Effective control of decision implementation
Conduct record and protocol of data base
management and archiving

15. 3. Managing statistical processes
3.4 Managing the respondent burden
Applied electronic reporting
The State Programme has a project called “Clever questionnaire"
Used administrative data sources
For small businesses applied a simplified mode
Respondents are informed about the changes in forms
Presented the proposals to the government on reducing the respondent burden

16. 4. Managing statistical outputs
4.1 Assuring relevance
Organized regularly meetings with users
Conduct the monitor of users’ feedback and offers,
organized surveys
Preparing metadata on reports and indicators
Created the working groups
Dissemination policy is in place
The projects submitted for public discussion
The State Programme is available on the website
Participation in regional and international events,
study of new requirements
Study of the users satisfaction level

17. 4. Managing statistical outputs
4.2 Assuring accuracy and reliability
The rules for the review data exist
Measuring sampling errors
Submitted the explanatory information during the correction process
Prepared the regularly reports on report discipline and data quality
Conducting the data monitoring and errors discovering

18. 4.3 Assuring timeliness and punctuality
4. Managing statistical outputs
4.3 Assuring timeliness and punctuality
Release calendar meet the international requirements
The action plans designing timely
Assuring the access to previous period data
Timetable for data collecting, processing and publishing exist

19. 4.4 Assuring accessibility
4. Managing statistical outputs
4.4 Assuring accessibility
Format of output data meet the international requirements
Using ICT resources for dissemination
The catalogue of publication submitted in advance
Operates "hot line"
The rules on access to microdata for research purposes exist
Metadata disseminated

20. 4. Managing statistical outputs
4.5 Assuring coherence and comparability
Retrospective time series are compiled
Data of previous years recalculated in the new structure in case of changes in methodology on indicator forming or introduction of a new classification
National classifications designing in accordance with international
Assuring coherence of using terminologies and methodologies
Administrative sources, basically, give a chance to assuring comparability

21. 4. Managing statistical outputs
4.6 Managing metadata
Action plan on managing metadata for the period exist
Prepared the concept of metadata system
Prepared the glossary of statistical concepts
Documented procedure on quality management system exist

22. Thank you!