Aligning with European Standards: Key Results of the Twinning Project for Modernizing BiH Statistics Presented
The Twinning project "EU for Further Development of the Statistical System in BiH" was successfully concluded with an official ceremony on April 22 in Sarajevo. Over two years, the project focused on strengthening capacities and improving official statistics quality, advancing alignment of the domestic system with EU standards.
Modernization of Processes and European Standards
Over the past two years, experts from Bosnia and Herzegovina, in cooperation with colleagues from Denmark, Finland, Italy, and Slovenia, worked on modernizing processes and improving quality in several statistical areas.
In the field of business statistics, the focus was on more precise monitoring of complex enterprises and the development of new indicators for the real estate market. In the tourism sector, guidelines were defined for the future establishment of Tourism Satellite Accounts (TSA), which will enable more accurate measurement of the economic impact of tourism on the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
A significant step forward in modernization was achieved with the launch of the first online survey on the use of information and communication technologies. Simultaneously, methodological frameworks in the areas of economic statistics and balance of payments were improved, while in the domain of income statistics, the focus was placed on greater reliability and international comparability of data on the living conditions of citizens.
Statistics in the Service of Society and Youth
In addition to the modernization of statistical processes, special attention was paid to developing statistical literacy. Within the project, a competition for secondary school students was successfully organized and met with an exceptional response. The task for the young creatives was to use official statistical data to tell authentic life stories, demonstrating that real life lies behind the numbers.
In this way, the role of statistical institutions was brought closer to new generations, with a clear message that data is key to understanding the world around us.
Sustainability and Future Development
The Twinning project “EU for Further Development of the Statistical System in Bosnia and Herzegovina” confirmed the importance of continuous cooperation among institutions within Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the strength of the partnership with European Union member states.
The achieved results, which have already been integrated into the work of domestic statistical institutions, represent an important foundation for the further development of a reliable, modern, and European-aligned statistical system.