Book Description

The relevance of applied economic and social analysis stands or falls with the strength of the analytical tools, on the one hand, and the appropriateness of the underlying data framework, on the other hand. Whereas virtually all economic and sociological research focuses on the analytical tools, this book deals with the design of an appropriate data framework. In many countries, it is not so much a lack of data per se that is the problem. Official statistics often comprise a wealth of information, laid down in many different publications. The main difficulty then relates to the lack of integration of these statistics, so that all kinds of events that are interrelated in reality can only be studied in isolation. Of course, the lack of integration of statistics applies less to economic data, as the national accounts function as a coordinating information system for these data. In fact, an important aim of this book is to demonstrate that the basic principles of national accounts can and should be extended to a wider range of statistics, notably social and environmental statistics. For this purpose, a so-called System of Economic and Social Accounting Matrices and Extensions (SESAME) is designed and applied in this book, following its announcement in the 1993 System of National Accounts, the guidelines of the United Nations and other international organizations.