European integration
Keeping up with the times and successfully implementing European statistical standards are only part of the challenges that the State Statistical Office has been successfully dealing with for more than 25 years. The SSO has not neglected the obligation to harmonize Macedonian statistics with EU Acquis because the improvement and modernization of the statistical system is our permanent mission.
The role of the State Statistical Office in the process of accession to the European Union
Stabilization and Association Agreement
The State Statistical Office is directly involved in the implementation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA), to which the Republic of Macedonia is a signatory in 2001. The Director of the State Statistical Office is a member of the Working Committee for European Integration.
As a result of the high degree of compliance with the principles of official statistics of the United Nations and Eurostat, the State Statistical Office, with the signing of the SSA, received a dual role in official statistics in the country.
In the processes of implementing the SSA, the State Statistical Office has the obligation to provide reliable, objective, accurate, timely and internationally comparable statistical data, in accordance with the needs in all spheres of the SSA, on the one hand, and on the other hand, the Office is the coordinator of the National Statistical System and has the obligation to provide reliable, objective, accurate and timely statistical data for the needs of policy makers in the country.
Screening
The purpose of the screening is to acquaint the candidate countries with the EU acquis and prepare them for the negotiations. On the other hand, it also aims to enable the European Commission to evaluate the degree of readiness of the candidate countries, to be informed about their plans and to receive preliminary guidance on the issues that will be most relevant in the negotiations.
Chapter 18 Statistics is part of the first cluster of chapters, Fundamental Values. The activities in this chapter enable the National Statistical System to adequately fulfill the requirements of EU acquis in the field of statistics. EU rules require, under Chapter 18 EU acquis, that member states are able to produce statistics based on professional independence, impartiality, reliability, transparency and confidentiality. Common rules for methodology, processing and dissemination of statistical information are foreseen.
For Chapter 18 Statistics, three bilateral screening meetings have been held so far. The assessment of the European Commission is that Macedonian official statistics have achieved a high level of compliance with European legislation and international standards .