COICOP

COICOP
Name	COICOP
Full name	Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose
Maintained by	United Nations Statistics Division
Initial release	1999
Latest release	2018 (revision)
Type	Statistical classification
Usage	Household expenditure statistics, national accounts, price indices

COICOP

COICOP is an international statistical classification for categorizing household consumption by purpose, used in national accounts, household surveys, and price statistics. It supports comparability across countries and integrates with frameworks like the System of National Accounts, linking to classifications employed by organizations such as the United Nations, the European Union, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. The classification is applied in contexts involving agencies and institutions including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Eurostat, the International Labour Organization, and national statistical offices.

Background and Purpose

COICOP was developed to standardize reporting on household expenditure and consumption, aligning with the System of National Accounts and supporting work by the United Nations Statistics Division, Eurostat, and the Statistical Office of the European Union. It facilitates comparability among statistical series produced by agencies such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the Asian Development Bank. National institutions like the United States Census Bureau, Statistics Canada, Office for National Statistics, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, and Deutsches Statistisches Bundesamt adopt COICOP-compatible coding for household budget surveys and consumer price index compilation. The scheme assists central banks such as the European Central Bank and Bank of England, fiscal authorities like Her Majesty's Treasury, and international programs including the Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals monitoring.

Classification Structure

The structure of COICOP is hierarchical, with divisions, groups, classes, and subclasses mapped to levels used in national accounts, consumer price indices, and household expenditure surveys. It provides linkages to related classifications maintained by the United Nations, such as the International Standard Industrial Classification and the Central Product Classification, enabling integration with databases managed by the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and Eurostat. The schema supports alignment with country-level taxonomies used by agencies like Statistics New Zealand, Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía, Australian Bureau of Statistics, and Statistics Sweden. Specialized mappings have been produced for use by the European Central Bank, Bank of Japan, Reserve Bank of India, and National Institute of Statistics and Geography.

Applications and Use in Statistics

COICOP underpins compilation of household final consumption expenditure in national accounts prepared by the United Nations and contributors such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. It is used in calculating Consumer Price Index baskets by institutions like Eurostat, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Statistics Netherlands, and Statistics Finland. Household budget surveys conducted by Statistics Canada, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, and Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos rely on COICOP classifications to code outlays for publications by OECD, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, and Inter-American Development Bank. Central banks including the European Central Bank and Sveriges Riksbank use COICOP-based aggregates in inflation analysis and policy reports by the Bank of England, Federal Reserve Board, and Bank of Japan. International agencies such as UNICEF, UNESCO, World Health Organization, and the International Labour Organization utilize COICOP-coded data for social statistics and development indicators.

Revisions and Versions

COICOP has undergone revisions to reflect changes in consumption patterns and statistical practice, with updates coordinated by the United Nations Statistics Division and consultative inputs from Eurostat, OECD, and national statistical offices including Statistics Canada, Office for National Statistics, and Statistiska centralbyrån. Major updates align with revisions of the System of National Accounts and related classifications used by the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, European Central Bank, and Asian Development Bank. Versioning history includes harmonization efforts involving the United Nations, Eurostat, OECD, and technical advice from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, ensuring compatibility with standards adopted by Statistics New Zealand, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Implementation and Coding Practices

Implementers map survey instruments and accounting systems maintained by agencies such as the United Nations Statistics Division, Eurostat, and national offices to COICOP codes. Statistical software and platforms used by institutions like the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, OECD, and national statistical agencies employ data dictionaries referencing COICOP classes. Practical coding guidance is produced by organizations including Eurostat, the United Nations Statistics Division, and the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, with workshops and technical assistance from institutions such as the Inter-American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, and International Monetary Fund. Harmonization efforts involve taxonomies used by Statistics Canada, Statistics Sweden, Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía, and Deutsches Statistisches Bundesamt to ensure consistent assignment across household expenditure surveys, consumer price index projects, and national accounts.

Criticisms and Limitations

Critiques of COICOP arise from its granularity, cross-country comparability issues, and evolving consumption categories, raised in reviews by Eurostat, the United Nations Statistics Division, OECD, and national bodies such as Statistics Canada and Office for National Statistics. Analysts at institutions including the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and African Development Bank note challenges when mapping local product taxonomies used by customs agencies, statistical institutes, and central banks to COICOP, citing work by Statistics Sweden, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, and Statistics Netherlands. Research groups at universities and think tanks, collaborating with entities like UNESCO, WHO, and UNICEF, highlight limitations for social policy analysis and welfare measurement when household survey instruments by national agencies differ in scope or coding practice.

Category:Statistical classifications