In this sixth issue, the Courrier des statistiques (Statistics Courier) examines four data sources, two methods and one institution, while remaining open to the outside world, both in France and abroad.

With the 2021 redesign, the Labour Force Survey is modernising its data collection methods and complying with European requirements. Fidéli, a demographic file on dwellings and individuals, has become indispensable, particularly as a pivotal tool for social studies. The permanent demographic sample, with its extended possibilities, brings temporal depth to the analysis of individual trajectories. Finally, the RGCU, a gigantic database on professional careers, designed by the main pension scheme in France (Caisse nationale de l’assurance vieillesse - CNAV), promises to become a valuable source for researchers.

But how can files be matched without a common identifier? The Directorate of Evaluation, Forecasting and Performance Monitoring (Direction de l’évaluation, de la prospective et de la performance - DEPP) presents its method, through its information system on the integration of young people into working life. Upstream, how can administrative databases be improved? To this end, Belgium has institutionalised and implemented an approach that favours preventive methods based on the analysis of anomalies.

The issue concludes by explaining how the National Council for Statistical Information (Conseil National de l’information Statistique - CNIS) organises dialogue between users and producers of official statistics, to ensure the relevance of statistical outputs and to improve them.