The objective of the conference was to contribute to integration of statistical systems of the countries of the Western Balkans into a joint European statistical system through development, processing and distribution of statistics in the area of education on the basis of single standards and harmonised methodology. The delegations of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, FYR of Macedonia, Montenegro, Turkey and Serbia participated actively as did the representatives of Eurostat, Centre for Research in Education and Innovation (CERI/OECD), European Training Forum (ETF), National Educational Council of Finland, International Network of Educational Policy Centres, KulturContacta, UNICEF, Centre for Educational Policy and Belgrade University.

The workshop participants concluded that there was considerable and important space for joint action of the Western Balkans countries in the field of development and improvement of education statistics and creation of education policies. They also concluded that it was vital to focus, in the upcoming period, on establishing a functional and efficient mechanism of cooperation and exchange of experiences.

Source: 14th Newsletter on Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction