On October 10, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) hosted a meeting with a group of Norwegian colleagues with wide experience at Statistics Norway. The visit took place as part of an informal trip to the Republic of Moldova and provided an opportunity to discuss prospects for strengthening cooperation between statisticians from the two countries.

During the meeting, a wide range of aspects were discussed, including the main achievements of the National Statistical System (NSS) of the Republic of Moldova in the process of aligning with European standards, as well as the sustainability of the results achieved in the process of bilateral cooperation with Statistics Norway over the years. In turn, the Norwegian guests reported on the latest developments in Statistics Norway’s activities and on the Norwegian Government’s willingness to support a potential relaunch of cooperation with the NBS.

NBS representatives highlighted the priorities and needs for the development of the NSS, including: modernizing the technological infrastructure for the production and dissemination of official statistics by developing the NBS’s Integrated Statistical Information System; strengthening statistical registers by utilizing administrative and private sources in statistical work; and continuing to align statistics with EU standards.

The previous collaboration between the NBS and Statistics Norway had a significant impact on the modernization of national statistics. Between 2007 and 2010, Norwegian assistance contributed to the exploitation of administrative data, particularly the State Population Register, to the strengthening of human capacity through training, and to the development of IT infrastructure, including the creation of a data center. In the area of dissemination, Norwegian technical and financial support enabled the launch of the StatBank database and the PX-Web platform, which have significantly improved public access to statistical information. A notable outcome of the partnership was the modernization of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) calculation process through the digitization of data collection (using tablets). At the same time, the cooperation contributed to the development of business statistics, including the improvement of the methodology for short-term indicators, as well as the exchange of expertise in the field of demographic statistics.

This meeting reconfirmed the openness of both parties to exploring new forms of collaboration aimed at further supporting the modernization of Moldova’s official statistics in line with European and international best practices.