Tanzania does not yet subscribe to the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS), but has participated in the less stringent General Data Dissemination System (GDDS) since July 6, 2001. The IMF's 2004 Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC) data module reported that Tanzania has made significant improvements in the quality of its macroeconomic statistics as it has liberalized its economy, but identified numerous areas in which Tanzania fell short of SDDS specifications. The ROSC suggested that it would be possible, with technical and financial assistance and much effort, for Tanzania to subscribe to the SDDS within as little as five years. The 2007 IMF Article IV Consultation report noted that Tanzania continues to make progress in improving data quality and dissemination standards, but makes no mention as to whether that five year goal would be met.

General Overview

Tanzania does not subscribe to the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS), but has participated in the less rigorous General Data Dissemination System (GDDS) since July 6, 2001. The most recent IMF Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC), Data Module, for Tanzania was conducted in 2004. This report found Tanzania to be deficient in meeting a great many SDDS requirements. Periodicity, coverage, and timeliness were all identified as areas in which Tanzania failed to achieve appropriate levels of performance. Nonetheless, the ROSC asserted that if Tanzania takes appropriate action, it should be eligible to subscribe to the SDDS by about 2009. The IMF's 2007 Article IV Consultation devoted a chapter in its informational annex to statistical issues. Here it is reported that Tanzania's "economic and financial statistics are adequate for surveillance and program monitoring purposes, but remain weak despite progress in some areas and considerable technical assistance" (p. 13). Among the deficiencies identified were a paucity of publications and the lack of a clear, official dissemination policy.

The ROSC identified three principle producers of official statistics in Tanzania: the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the Bank of Tanzania (BoT), and the Ministry of Finance (MoF). The NBS handles statistical data regarding the national accounts, price indices, demographic data, and certain other economic statistics. The BoT produces monetary statistics and balance-of-payments data. The MoF compiles government statistical data. All three are based on what the ROSC called an "adequate" foundation of laws and institutions, and their authorities agree that statistical work depends on data quality. However, limited authority for the BoT, inadequate funding for the NBS, and the MoF's insufficient resources to support data compilation have undermined Tanzania's statistical capabilities. The ROSC further noted that sustainability is in question, given the fact that there have been inadequate skills transfers from outside technical consultants to their Tanzanian counterparts. Of the three agencies, the BoT and the NBS have put in place measures that help to effectively make use of available resources, but the MoF lags behind in this regard.

The 2004 ROSC praised Tanzanian authorities for their willingness in the past to comply with technical-assistance mission recommendations, including institutional reforms intended to enhance economic data compilation. The creation of the NBS is one example of this cooperative approach, in combination with the passage of legislation (the Statistics Act of 2006, drafted in 2002) to empower the NBS. Other steps forward include the MoF's creation of a Policy Analysis Department, and the passage of the Public Finance Act of 2001. The ROSC added that the staffs of the NBS, BoT, and MoF are professional and recognize the authority of the Code of Ethics for Civil Servants (or the BoT regulatory counterpart). However, confidence in data integrity is diminished by the fact that the government is permitted unacknowledged prior access to national accounts, price, monetary, and balance-of-payments data, and by the advance release of PPI data to major users rather than simultaneous release to all interested parties.

Tanzania employs concepts, definitions, scope, classification, sectorization, and methodology consistent with the System of National Accounts (SNA) standards of 1968, but the ROSC notes that some elements of the more recent (1993) SNA system are also in evidence. Another issue identified in the ROSC is faulty layout and design of balance-of-payment tabular data presentations. The ROSC cautioned that, as Tanzania's economy becomes increasingly liberalized, the role of statistics will grow increasingly important. The ROSC acknowledges that Tanzania may need significant resource assistance to improve its statistics regime. The 2007 IMF report noted that Tanzania employs concepts broadly consistent with the Government Finance Statistics Manual of 1986 in reporting central government revenue, expenditure, and financing, but added that it does depart from international standards in some respects. Finally, the 2007 IMF report announced that Tanzania has computerized the accounting system used for budgetary units. In the words of the report, "the computerized accounting system does not yet provide details about donor funded development expenditure and has not yet been extended to cover the extra-budgetary units" (p. 13).

The Principles

Comprehensive economic and financial data, disseminated on a timely basis.

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Tanzania does not yet subscribe to the IMF's SDDS, but participates in the less rigorous GDDS. The IMF's 2004 ROSC noted that Tanzania displays numerous deficiencies with regard to meeting SDDS dissemination requirements. Excessive time lags for data release, inadequate periodicity, and insufficiently broad coverage are all areas where improvements are needed. As Tanzania liberalizes its economy, the role of statistics has become more and more important, inspiring Tanzanian authorities to develop action plans to improve performance, according to the 2004 IMF ROSC. The ROSC suggested that, "if it rigorously implements a comprehensive action plan, Tanzania should be able to subscribe to the SDDS within five years" (p. 5).

The GDDS website discloses that Tanzania meets most of its requirements for the coverage, timeliness, and periodicity of its requisite datasets. The IMF's 2004 ROSC reported that it does fail to meet timeliness requirements for the Depository Corporations Survey, however, and that the lengthy delays to which its dissemination practices are prone contribute to its failure to meet timeliness requirements. Coverage problems remain an issue for price indices, labor market data, and government debt. Finally, the ROSC pointed out that there is no data disseminated on general government operations and the international investment position, and the PPI is not made available to the general public.

Ready and equal access to official statistics.

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Tanzania does not yet subscribe to the IMF's SDDS, but participates in the less rigorous GDDS. Tanzania does not make advance release calendars available to the general public, and the IMF 2004 ROSC cautioned that unequal access to data, favoring select users over the general public, remains a problem. Nonetheless, the ROSC found that the presentation of national accounts data is generally clear, although it mentioned that balance-of-payment data tables display formatting and layout problems. Government users appear to be more favorably treated than the broad public, and the ROSC noted that among the three principle data-compiling agencies, only the BoT maintains a publications catalog for the convenience of its users. A visit to the NBS website, however, discloses a number of additional publications, including census data, regional statistical data, mainland and Zanzibari statistics, and the national accounts for 2002. This aspect of the website appears to be still under construction, with links to publications still not functioning.

Official statistics must have the confidence of their users. Transparency of its practices and procedures is a key factor.

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Tanzania does not yet subscribe to the IMF's SDDS, but participates in the less rigorous GDDS. The 2004 ROSC noted that the legislative foundation for statistical collection, compilation, and dissemination for the MoF, BoT, and NBS is in place and the legal texts are publicly available. Less widely known is the fact that certain data (national accounts, price statistics, and balance-of-payments data) are released to government officials prior to their public release. In fact, the public is largely unaware that government finance data is available to all, on request. According to the ROSC, major users get early access to PPI statistics, and the MoF gets early access to monetary statistics through its representative on the BoT's Monetary Policy Committee. While users are told of major methodological, source, or technical changes when they occur, they do not usually get advance notice. The NBS sets forth its rules of ethics for staffers in "The Civil Service Department Standing Orders" of 1994. These rules also apply to MoF staff. The BoT has its own code of ethics, the 2002 Staff Regulations.

A set of standards that deals with the coverage, periodicity and timeliness of data must also address the quality of statistics.

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Tanzania does not yet subscribe to the IMF's SDDS, but participates in the less rigorous GDDS. The GDDS website notes that the integrity of BoT data is covered by the Bank of Tanzania Act of 2006, which confers on the BoT the authority to collect relevant data from every bank and financial institution and makes provision for data confidentiality. For the MoF, the relevant legal bases are provided in the Finance Act of 2000, the Government Loans, Guarantees, and Grants Act (No. 30 of 1974, amended in 2003), and the 1961 Exchequer and Audit Ordinance. The NBS derives its authority from the Statistics Act of 2006. The 2004 ROSC noted that Tanzania's macroeconomic statistics are provided with summary methodology documentation, but suggests that more detailed methodological information should be provided through national publications or on the NBS, MoF, and BoT websites. All three of the agencies have, in the ROSC's opinion, "an adequate legal and institutional framework that supports data quality, and demonstrate an awareness of quality as a cornerstone of statistical work" (p. 10). However, the ROSC went on to note that the BoT lacks the necessary authority to collect information outside of the financial sector that is necessary to the appropriate compilation of balance-of-payments statistics.