Prime Minister hails statistics sector’s performance in 2017

Addressing a conference of the General Office of Statistics (GSO) in Hanoi on January 22, the PM said statistics provided by the sector help the Government steer and run the national economy. 

Based on socio-economic statistics, the Government can grasp the situation of the country, each sector and each locality, measure the effectiveness of policies and mechanisms, and pinpoint important issues for each specific period, he said. 

PM Phuc also appreciated the GSO’s quarterly reports along with analysis on subjective and objective causes for the growth rate at different points of time. 

The Government leader urged the sector to improve it forecast work and promote the application of IT for faster and more accurate data processing.

GSO Director General Nguyen Bich Lam reported that the sector conducted one general economic census and 28 other surveys on smaller scale in 2017. The general economic census for the first time collected data on the subcontracting operations of enterprises and foreign non-governmental organisations operating in Vietnam. 

The GSO built economic growth scenarios for each quarter in 2017 and made recommendations accordingly to the PM and Deputy PMs. 

The Office also coordinated with ministries in the adjustment of prices of State-controlled commodities such as petrol, electricity, and health care and education services, contributing to fulfilling the goal of inflation control.

Lam said the GSO will continue to research and develop socio-economic growth scenarios to serve management work and improve the quality of its forecast and analysis of macro-economic situation. 

An important task for the sector is to make preparation for switching to the base year of 2020 from the current 2010.