Press Release No. 04/226

The International Monetary Fund's Statistics Department has revised the Fund's Guide to the General Data Dissemination System (GDDS) to incorporate the Executive Board's amendment on November 6, 2003 to promote the availability of statistical data related to the Millennium Development Goals (see Press Release No. 03/184). The Guide gives explicit recognition to the MDGs indicators and the development of appropriate statistical monitoring systems.

The GDDS provides a management tool to develop national statistical systems. The primary focus of the GDDS is to foster improvements in data quality, but it also serves as a guide on good practice in the production and dissemination of comprehensive, timely, and reliable economic, financial, and socio-demographic data. Thus, it provides countries with a framework for evaluating current data collection and publication practices, and for setting priorities on improvements to data in accordance with each country's schedule.

The GDDS is an important strategic project of the IMF's Statistics Department, which is responsible for work on improving data and statistical practices among IMF member countries. The GDDS metadata are a valuable source of information for bilateral and multilateral agencies that provide technical assistance to countries seeking to improve and deepen the quality of their data.

The GDDS was established in 1997 as a framework for countries to improve their statistical systems. The GDDS was developed in close collaboration with regional and international organizations, including the World Bank. Countries that participate in the GDDS provide metadata describing their data dissemination practices and detailed plans for improvement for posting on the IMF's Dissemination Standards Bulletin Board (http://dsbb.imf.org/Applications/web/gdds/gddshome/).