Passage from the French (courcier) System of National Accounting to the revised SNA and vice versa

Abstract

It has been, recognized in various sessions of the Conference of African Statisticians that a period of transition would be needed in implementing the revised SNA in countries of the region which had hitherto followed the Courier system. This is needed in order to avoid duplication and to ensure at the sometime continuity and comparability in the statistical series. During the period; of transition, the work could be carried out in one of two ways, namely, either (i)1 by 'continuing the compilation of accounts in accordance with the Courier system, while taking steps to realign the concepts, definitions and classifications of the existing- system to those of .the revised SNA aggregates and selected tables and accounts- of the revised SNA could be provided through approximations based on. data already obtained in this way; or.(ii) preferably, by compiling the accounts and tables directly in accordance with the revised SNA, and then to deriving the aggregates of the Courier system afterwards through a process of adjustments and approximations, in order to arrive at roughly comparable historical series to meet the needs of day-to-day administration arid economic development planning.