National Accounts Statistics

About this course

This course teaches you how to compile timely, high quality national accounts statistics based on the system of national accounts (SNA) framework. The course introduces the sequence of national accounts, the accounting rules, and the key macroeconomic indicators in the SNA framework. You will learn about gross domestic product (GDP) – the main aggregate of the system, and how to compile consistent and internationally comparable measures of GDP according to the production, income, and expenditure approaches. The course also discusses in detail, how the SNA can be used to track an economy’s production, consumption, and income and how to estimate volume measures of GDP.

Target audience

This introductory online course is designed for anyone interested in learning how to compile and disseminate national accounts statistics according to the System of National Accounts and using them for macroeconomic analyses.

Learning objectives

Upon completion of the course, participants should be able to:

• Describe the system of national accounts framework, understand the sequence of accounts and their interrelationships, and identify the key macroeconomic indicators Explain key national accounts concepts, accounting rules, and methods.
• Define the components of gross domestic product (GDP)  from the production approach.
• Apply the concepts, accounting rules, methods, and data sources necessary to estimate GDP from the production approach.
• Define the components of GDP from the expenditure approach.
• Apply the concepts, accounting rules, methods, and data sources necessary to estimate GDP from the expenditure approach.
• Define the components of GDP from the income approach.
• Apply the concepts, accounting rules, methods and data sources necessary to estimate GDP from the income approach.
• Define and explain how to compile volume estimates of GDP from both the production and expenditure perspective.