Conclusions from the Management Seminar on Global Assessments

1. Conclusions from the Management Seminar on Global Assessments EFTA-Eurostat-UNECE Seminar on Global AssessmentsYalta, Ukraine 23 – 25 September 2009 Petteri Baer, Regional Adviser, UNECE

2. Challenges inviting the need of performing Global Assessments • Special Cultural and Statistical traditions in the ways NSIs of CIS countries work • Global Assessments are needed by • The NSIs themselves • The Governing structures in the country • International donors • Seven background factors influencing NSS´s operational environments today

3. The “Seven background factors”, mentioned by Eurostat • Meetings of statisticians: Possibilities to meet and talk on an international level have enormously increased; • Internet: Almost all information available directly on line; • IT in general, more and more shared tools easy to access; • Today it is much more easy to see what other statistical offices are doing - We can visit each others internet, look at the data, easily make comparisons; • Globalisation - much more relations between countries, asking for reliable statistics, also for negotiations. Important to have good information accepted by the other party(ies); • Global international programs implemented in the field of Statistics: SNA, ICP, MDGs, Population and Housing Censuses, Agricultural Censuses…; • Statistical information is one of the important infrastructural cornerstones of modern societies.

4. GA – a tool for building reliable and efficient statistical systems • 10 years experience accumulated in performing Global Assessments of statistical systems, performed by UNECE and Eurostat • Country experiences on Gas were reported from 6+ countries in the Management Seminar • Assessor reports were given by 5 assessors • The importance of the legal and institutional framework • Special focus on Confidentiality issues

5. GA – A tool in exchanging international cooperation and best practices • Support for GAs will be given to participating countries by International organizations jointly – UNECE, EFTA and Eurostat • The importance of exchanging NSI experience • Best practices • Twinning • Advise can be obtained also on very problematic issues • Priority settings • Budget cuts

6. Assessments of Statistical Domains in a GA • Growing importance of this part of GAs the more developed the statistical system is • In this Management Seminar more detailed observations were made on assessing • Social and demographic statistics • Economic statistics • In all statistical domains • Development is taking place from old stove-pipe approaches – e.g. data collection only by statistical domains - to a more generic business model as an organizational basis in modern NSIs

7. The importance of building stakeholder and user relations • For building trust • For having statistics really used by numerous user groups • “Only used statistics is useful statistics” • Experience and guidance given by international organizations – “Making data meaningful” • ...and from experienced NSIs; Twinning

8. Expressions of Gratitude • To the hosting country and organisation, SSCU – for Yalta, for excellent facilities, good food and nice atmosphere • To EFTA, providing sufficient financing of the Management Seminar + presenters • To Eurostat and UNECE for their support • To the interpreters and all technical staff • To participants for active discussions

9. Wise words of Samuel Johnson • “Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a subject ourselves or we knowwhere we can find information upon it”