Dear Depository Librarian,

The United Nations Statistics Division is pleased to announce the launch of UNSTATS UN Common Database for statistics, accessible on the Internet at http://unstats.un.org/

The UNSTATS Database uses a Web browser interface to access hundreds of statistical series for all countries and areas of the world, with descriptions of the international sources and methods used in compiling the data. The series can be accessed alphabetically, by sources or by topics. For each series international sources and definitions of terms are given.

The UNSTATS Database has been developed to meet the demand for comprehensive international data at one Internet site. It draws selectively on statistics from throughout the UN system and brings them together using a common platform and interface, and global statistical standards.

It contains more than eight million data elements in more than 300 statistical series. In most cases time series are available from 1970 or 1980 and many series are disaggregated to show underlying distributions. It draws on more than 30 sources in DESA and the United Nations system. The UNSTATS Database is unique among large Web databases in providing for each series comprehensive footnotes and meta-information on sources, definitions and frequency of updates. Because a true relational database underlies the Web interface, updated data and meta-information is immediately available to uses.

Among the main data sources are the Statistics Division's own databases in merchandise trade, national accounts, demography and population, energy, status of women and industrial commodities production; and statistics from the Population Division, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs' Project Link, FAO, ILO, IMF, ITU, OECD, UNESCO, WHO, WIPO, World Bank and World Tourism Organization, among others.

The UNSTATS Database also provides meta-information never before available in such a comprehensive database. Technical definitions and standards are provided verbatim from their original sources as approved by an oversight inter-governmental body. New tools are used to fully integrate this meta-information with the statistics.

The Database is fully Web-enabled for access using a standard browser such as Internet Explorer or Navigator. You can instantly view selected data or country profiles, compile graphs and distributions of selected series, calculate certain derived measures and export data to your desktop in several popular formats for further analysis. You can also view key series compiled in country profiles covering a variety of economic and social issues.

Users can browse through the series in a single consolidated list, or list series by source or by topic. Single series (many with substantial disaggregation) for up to ten countries can be chosen and immediately viewed in HTML. For more than one series and country, the user has several options using “Advanced Data Selection”: retrieval and viewing in Excel (most small queries take only a few seconds to process and Excel can be launched on demand within the program), or export as Excel or database files.

The UNSTATS UN Common Database is a unique statistical resource of the UN system. More series and sources will be added by the Statistics Division as experience is gained and on the basis of user feedback. 
 

For more information on the data, please contact unstats@un.org. Subscriptions may be ordered from subscriptions@un.org.

Commercial Rate:

Single User:
1-year with 1 password/IP address: US$ 350
Additional Passwords: US$ 40 each

Site license:
Up to 500 access stations: US$ 750
Over 500 access stations: US$ 900

Academic/Government/NGO Rate:

Single User:
1-Year with 1 password/IP access: US$ 250
Additional Passwords: US$ 30 each (User ID/Password only)

Site license:
Up to 3,000 access stations: US$ 500
Over 3000 access stations: US$ 650

Individuals:

1-Year User ID/Password: US$ 100

Developing Countries:

All customers: 50% off the above rates (see above).

Depository Libraries:

Developed Countries: 25% discount off Academic Rate (see above)
Developing Countries: 50% discount off Academic Rate (see above)

Non-Governmental Organizations:

Academic rate will apply (see above).

Governments:

Permanent Missions, Statistical Offices: Free access
All other Customers: Academic rate will apply (see above)