In an increasingly data-driven world, it is important to produce timely, relevant and accurate official statistics. To stay ahead of the curve, fostering new partnerships is key. As such, the European Statistical System (ESS) Innovation Network (EIN) is actively encouraging collaboration between National Statistical Institutes (NSIs) and academia. Such a partnership can unlock new research opportunities and methodologies to produce official statistics that can benefit the public good.
The EIN’s commitment to collaboration
The EIN is a Commission expert group that brings together statistical experts and innovation leaders from the NSIs of the European Union, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and the enlargement countries. Established in February 2023 by the Commission, the EIN’s primary objective is to structure and sustain innovation streams in the ESS, as well as implement the ESS Innovation Agenda.
The EIN is committed to strengthening collaboration between the NSIs and academia and research institutes. This strategic focus is complemented by a steadfast commitment to upskill staff and advance ongoing capacity building efforts, ensuring that official statistics remain agile and responsive to changing demands within the ESS.
To support this mission, thematic subgroups have been created. These subgroups play a key role in promoting, identifying relevant activities, and annually updating the ESS Innovation Agenda.
One such subgroup, ‘Collaboration of the NSIs with Academia’, is central to exploring and fostering innovation in official statistics. This subgroup focuses on sustainable partnerships between NSIs and universities, leveraging foundational assets such as the European Master in Official Statistics (EMOS) programme.
Additionally, this collaboration is strengthened through ESS grants that actively involve research organisations, thus enhancing the collective power of these initiatives within the ESS.
Benefits of collaborating with academia
Partnerships with academia can bring many benefits to NSIs, including:
Access to expertise: Academia offers specialised knowledge in fields such as advanced statistical methods, data science and domain-specific insights.
Innovative research and methods: Universities lead in research and innovation, providing NSIs with cutting edge methodologies and a broader research network, essential for linking theory with real-world application.
Talent pool: Academic institutions nurture talented students and researchers, presenting opportunities for NSIs to recruit skilled professionals adept in the latest statistical techniques and tools.
Capacity building: Collaboration enables training programmes and workshops, enhancing the skills of NSI staff skills and fostering continuous learning.
Applied research in official statistics: By encouraging real-world research, collaboration ensures that statistics remain practical and impactful.
Data sharing and access for research: Partnerships facilitate the sharing of aggregated and sometimes confidential microdata, maximising its value while adhering to legislative requirements.
Interdisciplinary perspectives: Academia introduces diverse perspectives, particularly when integrating new data sources into official statistics.
Policy and decision support: Academic collaboration strengthens evidence-based policymaking by leveraging robust research for data-driven decisions.
The collaboration between NSIs and academia has the potential to foster innovation, exchange knowledge and develop skilled professionals. This can ultimately contribute to the continuous improvement of statistical practices and their relevance.
The EIN discussed it during an online workshop summarized in the article: 'Strengthening collaboration: Insights from the online ‘innovathon’.
Collaboration in action
The examples of successful collaboration between NSIs and academia come from various statistical institutes, which sought academic expertise in enhancing the quality of their official statistics as well as EMOS programme managed by Eurostat, thus include:
Towards a collaborative future
With the need to produce high-quality and timely statistics, fostering collaboration between NSIs and academia is ever more important. The EIN highlights the importance of these partnerships in driving innovation, improving methodologies and addressing evolving demands.
The examples of collaboration show that harnessing the expertise, innovative research and diverse perspectives offered by academia can enhance NSIs’ statistical practices and ensure the relevance and accuracy of the data they produce.
By seeking out academic collaboration, NSIs can ultimately strengthen the overall quality and effectiveness of official statistics within the ESS.
Last update: March 2025