Statistics Netherlands, founded in 1899, is a Dutch governmental institution that gathers statistical information about the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. In Dutch it is known as the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (''Central Agency for Statistics''), often abbreviated to CBS. It is located in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

and

Heerlen Heerlen (; li, Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg ...

. Since 3 January 2004, Statistics Netherlands has been a self-standing organisation, or

quango A quango or QUANGO (less often QuANGO or QANGO) is an organisation to which a government has devolved power, but which is still partly controlled and/or financed by government bodies. The term was originally a shortening of "quasi-NGO", where N ...

. Its independent status in law guarantees the reliable collection and dissemination of information supporting public debate, policy development and decision-making. The CBS collects statistical information about, amongst others: * Count of the population * Consumer pricing * Economic growth * Income of persons and households *

Unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refere ...

* Religion The CBS carries out a program that needs to be ratified by the Central Commission for Statistics. This commission was replaced in 2016 by an Advisory Board. This independent board must guard the impartiality, independence, quality, relevance, and continuity of the CBS, according to the Law on the CBS of 1996 (''Wet op het Centraal bureau en de Centrale commissie voor de statistiek'') and 2003.

History

CBS was established in 1899 in response to the need for independent and reliable information that advances the understanding of social issues and supports public decision making. This is still the main role of CBS.

Philip Idenburg Philippus Jacobus Idenburg ( Hillegersberg, 26 November 1901 – Wassenaar, 29 December 1995) was a Dutch educationalist and statistician. Philip joined the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics) where he ...

, who worked at the CBS from 1929–1966, played a key role in salvaging the work of the

Mundaneum The Mundaneum was an institution which aimed to gather together all the world's knowledge and classify it according to a system called the Universal Decimal Classification. It was developed at the turn of the 20th century by Belgian lawyers Paul ...

offices in

, arranging for

Gerd Arntz Gerd Arntz (11 December 1900, in Remscheid – 4 December 1988, in The Hague) was a German Modernist artist renowned for his black and white woodcuts. A core member of the Cologne Progressives, he was also a council communist. The Cologne Progres ...

to be involved in setting up the Dutch Foundation for Statistics, which used the Isotypes previously developed by Arntz and

Otto Neurath Otto Karl Wilhelm Neurath (; 10 December 1882 – 22 December 1945) was an Austrian-born philosopher of science, sociologist, and political economist. He was also the inventor of the ISOTYPE method of pictorial statistics and an innovator in mu ...

Offices

The CBS has offices in The Hague and Heerlen. The office in

was located there by the government in 1973 to compensate the area for the loss of ten of thousands of jobs because of closing the coal mines. The office in The Hague with the name 'Double U' was designed by Branimir Medić and Pero Puljiz. It has a surface of and the total cost was €41,000,000. The office in Heerlen was designed by Meyer en Van Schooten Architects in 2009. The office has a surface of and parking spaces for 296 cars. Glass was used everywhere in the building. The main hall has a glass roof and the outside walls are fully glass. The several straight staircases in the main hall have glass balustrades with a RVS handrail and were manufactured by

EeStairs EeStairs is a designer and manufacturer of staircases and balustrades and inventor of the patented 1m2 staircase. EeStairs has offices in the UK, Europe and the USA. Its headquarters are located in the Netherlands. History Founded in 2000 as a cons ...

Queen Beatrix Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husban ...

of the Netherlands officially opened the building on 30 September 2009.Opening by Queen Beatrix, news article (dutch)
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References

External links

Statistics NetherlandsStatLine database
{{Authority control

Economy of the Netherlands Independent government agencies of the Netherlands Organisations based in The Hague Buildings and structures in Heerlen Buildings and structures in The Hague

History

Offices

See also

References

External links