IMF COFOG Classifications of Functions of Government

Summary

The Classification of the Functions of Government (COFOG) was developed by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and published by the United Nations Statistical Division. It can be applied to government expense and the net acquisition of nonfinancial assets and is under the IMF Government Financial Statistics (GFS) Database.

The Data Team uses COFOG for a number of series such as SeriesGovSocialExp%GDPIMF, SeriesGovSocialExpMax%GDPIMF, and SeriesGovtPension%GDPIMF.

To pull data from COFOG, refer to the instructions below

Tables In IFs

Variable	Definition	UsedInPreprocessor	Name in Source
GovSocialExp%GDPIMF	Government social protection expenditure as % of GDP, excluding pension expenditure (IMF)	0	Expenditure on social protection (minus Expenditure on old age & survivors)
GovSocialExpMax%GDPIMF	Government social protection expenditure as % of GDP (IMF)	0	Expenditure on social protection
GovtPension%GDPIMF	Government pensions expenditure as % of GDP (IMF)	0	Expenditure on old age & Expenditure on survivors
GovtGenCommEx%GDP	General government expenditure on communication as % of GDP	0	Expenditure on communication
GovtGenTranEx%GDP	General government on transportation as % of GDP	0	Expenditure on transport
GovtGenWasMgmtEx%GDP	General government on waste management as % of GDP	0	Expenditure on waste management
GovtGenWasWatMgmtEx%GDP	General government on waste water management as % of GDP	0	Expenditure on waste water management
GovtGenWatSupEx%GDP	General government on water supply as % of GDP	0	Expenditure on water supply

Data Pulling Instructions

There are two ways to pull data:

First Way

Step 1: Navigate to the query tab of IMF GFS

Select: Government Finances Statistics (GFS), Expenditure of Government (COFOG) Step 2: Once you click it, select your indicators. Select all countries, all years, and the COFOG indicator and sector of government you need. Select View: Table. To organize the data, you can follow this selection (remember to select all the years):

Step 3: you can download the bulk excel (circled below)

If you would like to use a script to organize the data: here.

Second Way

Step 1: Navigate to the IMF Data Portal

Step 2: Select Download IMF Data from the top bar

You will be navigated to this page:

Step 3: Scroll down and locate Government Finance Statistics (GFS), Expenditure by Function of Government (COFOG)

Step 4: Click the download icon next to the dataset name

If you have not previously signed in, the pop up pictured below will appear. Click OK.

You will be navigated to this page:

Step 5: Fill out the required fields and click Register New User

You will be navigated to this page:

Step 6: Enter the confirmation number sent to the email you provided and click Enter Confirmation Number

You will be navigated to this page, which will automatically navigate you back to the Download tab

Step 7: Locate Government Finance Statistics (GFS), Expenditure by Function of Government (COFOG) and click the download icon again

This pop-up will appear:

Use the tabs to select the desired countries, sector, unit, COFOG Function, and date range.

Step 8: When you have made all of your selections, click OK

This pop-up will appear:

Step 9: To locate the download file, you can either click My Downloads or click OK and navigate to the email you used to create your account

My Downloads will look like this:

The email will look like this:

Step 10A (My Downloads): If you choose to navigate to My Downloads, locate the dataset in your Downloads queue and click the download icon to download the dataset

Step 10B (Email): If you choose to navigate to your registered email, click the download link to download the dataset