International statistics

The FSO represents Swiss statistics in organisations responsible for the international statistical system by regularly giving Switzerland's opinion on strategical options chosen and by making official data available to organisations, thus enabling them to produce relevant analyses and publications.

The FSO also maintains relations with the Statistics Offices of neighbouring countries or those facing similar challenges by looking for possible synergies and joint solutions.

With this in mind, Switzerland cooperates with all major organisations active in this field. The FSO is the official contact point for other Swiss statistical agencies (Federal, cantonal, municipal) to international organisations.

The United Nations

At the UN (UN Statistics Division and Economic Commission for Europe), the FSO can exert influence on the major decisions that constitute the programme of the international statistical system. The UN collects and disseminates statistics, has a leadership in standardising methods, classifications and definitions, as well as technical cooperation and the coordination of international statistical programmes.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development

Switzerland also contributes to OECD statistics. The OECD played a pioneering role in the production of internationally comparable statistics and is engaged in innovative projects such as Measuring the Progress of Societies. By remaining flexible, the OECD allows its members to take part in new projects on a voluntary basis. Switzerland chooses depending on their relevance and the resources available.

The European Union

The EU develops, produces and disseminates statistics since the European Coal and Steel Community was established in the early 1950s. European statistics are dealt with by Eurostat, that is part of the European Commission, and that works with the EU Member States and some third countries. European statistics are primarily used by the EU institutions to develop, implement and monitor EU policies.

The domains covered by European statistics are a reflection of the development of EU policies: nowadays almost all domains of society, economy and environment are covered by these statistics. Switzerland cooperates with the EU in the field of statistics by virtue of a bilateral agreement that entered into force on 1 January 2007. This agreement makes it possible for Switzerland to be part of the European Statistical System (ESS).

The International Monetary Fund

The FSO is also involved in several international initiatives such as the IMF's Special Data Dissemination Standard.

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