Affiliations: [a] Strategy and Planning, International Relations, Research and Communication, Federal Statistical Office of Germany, Wiesbaden, Germany | [b] Questionnaire Pretesting, Data Collection Methods, Federal Statistical Office of Germany, Wiesbaden, Germany
Abstract: Principle 10 of the UN FPOS “International cooperation” describes the unique benefit and necessity of bilateral and multilateral cooperation in statistics for the improvement of systems of official statistics in all countries: “Bilateral and multilateral cooperation in statistics contributes to the improvement of systems of official statistics in all countries” [11]. The UN FPOS implementation guidelines further emphasise the aspect that it is of benefit for both sides: “Continuous exchange of views and knowledge between Statistical Institutes is an essential prerequisite to ensure effectiveness in the Statistical Cooperation for both sides – the recipients and providers of assistance” [12]. The investment in partnerships at the European and international levels, which also includes statistical capacity building, counts among the strategic goals of the Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis) [6]. Since the early 1990s Destatis has been actively engaged in bilateral partnerships and Twinning projects, such as the World Bank funded Twinning Project “Strengthening the National Statistical System of Mongolia” from 2010 to 2014. More than 2,900 activities have been implemented in more than 35 national statistical offices in the EU as well as in other European and Asian target countries in line with the German foreign and development policy. Since 2004, Destatis has been increasingly providing management trainings and consulting for executives of statistical offices of partner countries in the domain of quality management. Today, approximately 20 per cent of all consultations within Twinning projects relate to this area.
Keywords: Statistical capacity building, quality management, United Nations Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics (UN FPOS), UN FPOS implementation guidelines, International Statistical Institute Declaration of Professional Ethics (ISI DPE), European Code of Practice (COP), Twinning partnership
