Abstract

Transparency is an important element of trust in a National Statistical System (NSO). It is also part of the scientific approach, part of ethical behaviour and foundational to public sector organizations. For these reasons, transparency needs not only be dealt with but it needs to be planned and lived by NSOs. Historically, this has not always been the case until it became relatively evident and more clearly articulated. This paper explores Statistics Canada’s evolution in transparency considering both a priori and ex post facto approaches to transparent communication. The presentation will explain the Canadian context of social acceptability evolution and describe the related frameworks that have been developed and adopted. It will also illustrate their use by means of concreate examples.