Minister of Industry, Trade and Mining Eduardo Accastello, together with Minister of Labor Omar Sereno and Minister of Science and Technology Pablo Javier de Chiara, has launched the "Córdoba in Focus" program, which involves measuring productive activity through a monitoring system incorporated to different industrial, service, mining and construction sectors.

This is a one-of-its-kind tool in the country, to serve both the public and private sector and created through their mutual collaboration, for the management of public policy based on precise, systematic and real-time up-to-date data.

The tool enables the generation of monthly statistics on the level of activity and employment in each sector. During exceptional periods, such as the one the world is going through in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, the system allows for weekly statistics in order to measure, in real time, the extent of the problems and recovery pace of each sector.

One of the most important features of the tool is that it protects the confidentiality of the data provided by companies, through a process of email triangulation that allows said firms to contribute information anonymously, while also leading to "peer pressure" that encourages participation on the part of the different sectors' entities.

Minister Accastello said,

"Córdoba in Focus is the first program of its kind in Argentina. It allows us to produce statistics and has the main goal of finding the needs of each sector, since public policies are adopted based on real information. Besides, it cautiously guards the information of each company."

Argentine Construction Chamber executive Natalia Buttigliengo, for her part, expressed,

"I find it excellent that the private sector can contribute with the public sector, work together and move forward. I believe this tool will give us very useful information and will be key to measuring our activity, and setting deeper and more precise objectives."

The Minister finished,

"This offers an opportunity to come closer to the 2030 Córdoba Productive Matrix in the new post-pandemic process, considering the Córdoba of productive development."

During this first stage, the sectors to be monitored are those related to the graphics, food, dairy, peanut, mining, autoparts, refinery and foundry, and technology industries.

Some of the industrial chambers involved in the work are:

• APYMEL (dairy sector)
• AFAMAC (agricultural machinery, agriparts sector)
• CIIECCA (telecommunications sector)
• Chamber of Peanuts
• AFIC (slaughterhouses)
• UGAR (graphics sector)
• Chamber of Footware
• Chamber of Wood and Furniture