Abstract

The quality of official statistics is fundamentally dependent on the quality of data reported by various agents, such as banks and companies. However, reporting information, particularly for statistical purposes, is often perceived as a cost by providers. This results in data that frequently do not meet the required standards, due to the low priority given to investments related to this obligation. To address this issue, one possible strategy is to offer a return for reporting, encouraging providers to see value in the process. This return can take the form of benefiting from the statistics generated using their reported data, thus enhancing their decision-making capabilities. In recent years, Banco de Portugal has pursued this strategy, aiming to transform data providers into data users. Initiatives such as the "Enterprise sector tables" for companies and, more recently, quality reports and backflows for banks, have been central to this approach. This paper explores whether this conversion of providers into users is a myth or a fact, examining the effectiveness of these strategies in fostering better data reporting and utilization.