Executive Order No. 352 was issued in July 1996 to implement the System of Designated Statistics (SDS) as a mechanism for the identification and generation of the most crucial and essential statistics for administrators, planners, policy makers, and decision makers in the government and private sectors. It is also an important tool in addressing problems, such as data makers in the government and private sectors. It is also an important tool in addressing problems, such as data gaps, duplication, delayed release and inaccessibility of important sets of statistics, and as a framework for setting priorities in data production.

The designation includes the implementing agency, frequency of collection, geographic disaggregation and schedule of data dissemination. At present, there are 60 activities/statistics designated; however, it is a dynamic system that allows modifications to respond to changing needs and priorities and to emerging capabilities of statistical offices.

The statistics under the SDS form the core of official statistics that constitute a set of public good that the designated data producers must be accountable for. These include censuses, surveys, administrative data systems, derived data systems and statistical indicators. As a result, these designated statistics receive priority attention in the preparation of the national budget and duplication of statistical efforts is minimized, if not eliminated.

Relatedly, the Philippine government has been subscribing to the International Monetary Fund’s Special Data Dissemination Standards (SDDS) since 1996. The SDDS covers economic and financial data and their releases are monitored through the advance release calendar and metadata. The PSA serves as the coordinator for the SDDS.