Relevance
The
Classification of Functions of Government (COFOG) classifies government
expenditure data from the system of National Accounts by the purpose for which
the funds are used. It is a detailed
classification of the functions or socio-economic objectives, that general
government units aim to achieve through various kinds of outlays. First-level COFOG splits expenditure data
into ten functional groups or sub-sectors of expenditure and second-level COFOG
further splits each first-level group into up to nine sub-groups. COFOG is used to distinguish between the
individual and collective services provided by general government and
identifies consumption expenditure that benefits individual households. It also
permits trends in government outlays on particular functions or purposes to be
examined over time.
The ten
functional groups are: (1) General Public Services, (2) Defence, (3) Public
Order and Safety, (4) Economic Affairs, (5) Environmental Protection, (6)
Housing and Community Amenities, (7) Health, (8) Recreation, culture and
religion, (9) Education, and (10) Social Protection.
The COFOG
exercise is based on guidelines set out in the IMF Government Finance
Statistics Manual.
The legal
basis for compilation and transmission of General Government expenditure function
is Council Regulation (EC) No. 549/2013 (Annex B - Table 11 of the ESA
2010 transmission programme).
Methodological
description
COFOG statistics are compiled
using administrative data collected on an annual basis. The administrative reports used are the Departmental
Accounting System (DAS), Financial Data Reporting System (FDRS), and the Treasury’s
Accruals templates. Other data used to
compile COFOG are provided directly from the ministry, department or entity concerned
or else, when possible, from internal units within the NSO. Final audited accounts for the Extra
Budgetary Units and the Local Councils are also supplied.
Data from the DAS and FDRS is
available on a monthly basis, while the Treasury's accruals templates are
available on a quarterly basis.
Accuracy
and reliability of data
Quality of data is assured by
adherence to the ESA 2010 and the manual on sources and methods for the
compilation of COFOG statistics.
All
accounts in the corporate chart of accounts (COA) of DAS are coded in
accordance with the requirements of the ESA 2010 and checks with previous years
and the current economic scenario are undertaken.
Further
checks are conducted by the Public Finance Unit on the Treasury’s accruals templates. Each quarter, any queries are sent to the Accounting, Methodology and Compliance Unit (AMCU)
in respect of changes in debtors and creditors greater than €1.0 million.
For any
queries or clarifications on the FDRS templates, contact is either made
directly with the particular Extra Budgetary Unit (EBU) or with the Financial
Management and Monitoring Unit (FMMU) at the Budget Office.
Timeliness
and punctuality of data
At a
national level, a news release is disseminated on an annual basis in January of
year t+2, and covers reference period from year t-5 to year t.
COFOG data
is transmitted to Eurostat at t+12 months.
Accessibility
and clarity of data
News
releases are published as scheduled in the Advance
Release Calendar and are available on the NSO’s website.
Coherence
and comparability/consistency of data
Data are
comparable across all European Union member states, as harmonised European
rules (ESA 2010 and Manual on sources and methods for the compilation of COFOG
statistics) are used by all countries for compiling COFOG data.
Data is
comparable from 1995 onwards. Data
series covers the period between 1995 and 2000 for COFOG first-level
(divisions) and from 2001 onwards for COFOG second-level (groups).
Prior to
year 2008 the unit of measure was the Maltese Lira (Lm) and the conversion rate
to euro used was the fixed rate of 0.4293.
Consistency is ensured within and between the
COFOG table and the ESA transmission programme tables.
Metadata