The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reaffirmed its commitment to promoting digital transformation, at the Moldova Digital Summit 2025 - a nationally and regionally significant event held under the high patronage of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, from 5 to 7 June. The event brought together representatives from the Government, the private sector, education and science - the most important actors in society who are directly engaged in accelerating the digital transformation of the Republic of Moldova.

A key moment of this important event was the signing of the Letter of commencement of Shared Horizons between the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Chisinau, the Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalization of the Republic of Moldova, the National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for the Republic of Moldova. This initiative marks a significant step towards a shared vision in the field of data governance, through which the two countries aim to facilitate mutual exchange of expertise, best practices, and effective digital solutions, contributing to the development of modern and resilient national statistical systems.

The event provided an opportunity to strengthen Moldova-Qatar cooperation in the field of statistics, initiated in 2024 in Doha, when the Moldovan delegation consisting of representatives from the Prime Minister’s Office, the NBS, and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Moldova, participated in the Data Forum for Innovation in Sustainable Development. The Digital Summit confirmed the potential of this partnership for the exchange of best practices in statistics, digitalisation, and data governance.

The signing of the Letter of commencement of Shared Horizons was followed by discussions at the high-level panel “Moldova - Qatar Partnership: Data Governance and Digitalisation on the Road to the EU”. The panel, moderated by Karina Nersesyan, UNFPA Representative in the Republic of Moldova, brought together the following speakers:

• Ms. Doina Nistor, Deputy Prime Minister, Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalisation of the Republic of Moldova;
• Dr. Turki bin Abdullah Zaid Al-Mahmoud, Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Moldova;
• Mr. Mohammed Jassim Al-Buainain, Director of the Department of Social and Environmental Statistics, National Statistics Center, State of Qatar;
• Dr. Oleg Cara, Director General of the National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova.

In his address, Oleg Cara reaffirmed the commitment of the National Bureau of Statistics to integrating the latest technological solutions into the production of official statistics. “These efforts aim to enhance the relevance and reliability of official statistics, as well as to increase user satisfaction - from decision-makers to citizens,” noted the Director General of the NBS.

During the presentation, Oleg Cara outlined the main digitalisation initiatives of the NBS, as well as the significant progress achieved in modernising statistical production and disemination. These include the use of digital technology in the 2024 Population and Housing Census, the use of alternative data sources, information security and data protection, the digitalisation of data collection in household surveys, the development of statistical registers, the launch of experimental statistics, among others.

The Director General of the NBS also highlighted the remarkable results, recently achieved by the Republic of Moldova according to the Open Data Inventory (ODIN) 2024/25 assessment, which ranked the country 18th in the world and 3rd in Eastern Europe in terms of the availability and openness of statistical data. The Director General emphasized that this achievement is a direct result of the increased used of digital technologies and the continuous modernisation of statistical processes.

Among the key priorities of the National Bureau of Statistics in the digital modernisation process, the following were outlined:

• Strengthening data governance, including data and metadata exchange;
• Completing data processing, linking data with relevant administrative sources and disseminating the final results of the 2024 Population and Housing Census (2024 PHC);
• Redesign of household surveys using the new sampling framework provided by the 2024 PHC (ongoing);
• Expanding the digitalisation of data collection, particularly in household surveys;
• Redesign of the NBS metadata-driven information system;
• Establishment of an Integrated Data Quality Management System;
• Developing statistical registers on population and housing based on 2024 PHC data;
• Strengthening the institutional capacities of the NBS, particularly by enhancing staff training within the Bureau and institutions within the National Statistical System.

The Moldova Digital Summit 2025 once again proved that the digital transformation of the Republic of Moldova requires a joint effort based on collaboration between public institutions, academia, the business sector and international partners. The active participation of the NBS and the firm message conveyed by its leadership reaffirm the essential role of official statistics in a modern economy, based on quality data, knowledge and informed decision-making.