DGINS Conference: New Horizons of Official Statistics

This year’s theme, “New Horizons of Official Statistics,” brought together Directors-General and experts from national statistical institutions of the European Union and enlargement countries. Representing our country was Vesna Ćužić, Director of the Agency for Statistics of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The DGINS Conference (French: *Directeurs Généraux des Instituts Nationaux Statistiques*) has evolved into a platform for continuously questioning the traditional role of official statistics, discussing innovations, strategic development, and new methodologies, as well as establishing and strengthening international partnerships.

Part of this year’s DGINS program, symbolically titled “Drivers of Change,” created a platform for discussions on strategies to make statistical institutions more accessible to the general public. Panelists placed particular emphasis on the necessity of continuously enhancing the user experience, highlighting that new demands from stakeholder groups must play a dominant role in shaping and developing official statistics. Panel discussions explored ways in which institutions can strategically engage and motivate stakeholder groups—such as various organizations, administrative bodies, private data owners, and businesses—to share their databases in support of official statistics and the common good.

In recent years, national statistical offices have gradually taken on additional roles and tasks, and the meeting in Tallinn provided an opportunity to showcase successful practices demonstrating how modern data services can be effectively integrated with traditional ones. Specifically, there is a need to redefine the role and tasks of official statistics, acknowledge the emergence of new user groups, and deepen the understanding of their interest in additional statistical products.

In this context, sessions at the DGINS Conference were also dedicated to mapping expanded and new data services. Examples include interactive web portals, catalogs, registers, and popular dashboards, which provide users with a clearer understanding of trends, offering a visually appealing and engaging way to present key statistical data in a concise manner. At the same time, it was emphasized that the digital age inevitably leads to the transformation of traditional systems. However, there should be no compromises in terms of quality, privacy protection, and data security throughout this process.

Additionally, professional conferences like DGINS always provide an opportunity for leaders of the European statistical system to emphasize the importance of data harmonization and standardization, improving training systems, conducting joint research projects, cross-border data exchange, and similar initiatives. Only such an approach can ensure the long-term relevance, reliability, and, most importantly, the practical value of data in informed decision-making processes for official statistics.

"The Tallinn: Key Conclusions on New Horizons of Official Statistics" document, issued at the conclusion of the conference, defines guidelines for the development of the European statistical system up to 2030.

The DGINS conference is held each year in a different European country. Following Estonia, the milestone 110th edition will be held in 2025 in neighboring Croatia, organized by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics.