IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit
comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the
author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.
IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit
comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the
author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.
This paper describes work in progress on data quality, an important element of greater transparency in economic policy and financial stability. Data quality is being dealt with systematically by the IMF through the development of data quality assessment frameworks complementing the IMF’s Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS) and General Data Dissemination System (GDDS). The aim is to improve the quality of data provided by countries to the IMF; and to assess evenhandedly the quality of countries’ data in Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes. The frameworks bring together best practices including those of the United Nations Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics.