About Us

CSO Mandate and Mission

Since its establishment as a specialist national statistical agency in 1949 the CSO has pursued the same mandate, as set out in the Statistics Act 1993:

"The collection, compilation, extraction and dissemination for statistical purposes of information relating to economic, social and general activities and conditions in the State"

It is also responsible for co-ordinating official statistics of other public authorities and for developing the statistical potential of administrative records.

The Office exists primarily to meet the needs of Government for quality statistical information which is a vital input to the formation, implementation and monitoring of policy and programmes at national, regional and local levels in a rapidly changing economic and social environment.

It also serves the needs of the wider national and international community (i.e. business, EU, international organisations, media, researchers, and the public generally) for impartial and relevant information on social and economic conditions. Particular attention is paid to the specialist needs of business and the research/academic community for more detailed and focused data.

This mandate is encapsulated in the following Mission Statement that appears in the CSO's 2008-2010 Corporate Plan:

Statistics for a Modern Ireland

The efficient and timely provision of high quality information for a changing society