Statistics Denmark

Statistics Denmark (Danish: Danmarks Statistik) is a Danish governmental organization under the Ministry for Economic and Interior Affairs. The organization is responsible for creating statistics on the Danish society, for example employment statistics, trade balance, and demographics.

Statistics Denmark is internationally recognized for its large use of public registers in the statistical production. Population censuses are produced entirely from registers since 1981.

StatBank is a large statistical database maintained by the central authority of statistics in Denmark. Online distribution of statistics has been a part of the dissemination strategy in Denmark since 1985. It is updated every day 9.00 am (CET) and contains all new statistics. The statistics can be presented as cross-tables, diagrams or maps. The output can be transferred to other programs for further compilation. There is also a Danish version.

Statistics Denmark provides essential information to politicians, other decision-makers, the general public, scholars, etc.

The production of statistics in Denmark is highly centralised. Statistics Denmark is responsible for ensuring that the overall statistical picture is complete and coherent regardless of the source. The main office is located in Copenhagen and this is where almost all of the 560 people employed by Statistics Denmark work.

The Act on Statistics Denmark gives an independent Board of Directors the responsibility to determine the institution’s work programme, thus allowing Statistics Denmark to operate independently of Government control.

The Act on Statistics Denmark grants access to the basic data necessary to produce the statistics. The Act states that public authorities must supply the information they possess when requested to do so by Statistics Denmark. Decisions on this must be settled by the Board. The private sector is also obliged to supply certain information for statistical purposes. The last population census was conducted in 1970. Censuses are now exclusively based on administrative registers private citizens now only participate in surveys on a voluntary basis. In accordance with these principles, Statistics Denmark has striven to develop a statistical system which is almost entirely based on the administrative registers of other public offices. Other collection methods are employed where necessary, but are only regarded as a supplement.

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