As part of the Pan-African Statistics II (PAS II) programme, financed by the European Union, managed by Eurostat and implemented by Expertise France and STATAFRIC, a Eurostat mission was held at STATAFRIC headquarters in Tunis on February 3-4, 2025.
The mission provided an opportunity to review progress in the activities of the PAS II Service Contract, which provides essential support to African Union Member States in several areas, including:
- National accounts,
- International trade statistics,
- Agricultural, environment, and climate change statistics,
- Institutional capacity support to STATAFRIC and Regional Economic Communities, notably IGAD and COMESA and organization of peer reviews of national statistical offices.
During the mission, discussions focused on how to ensure a more effective implementation of the programme. It was also an opportunity to meet all STATAFRIC's staff including those sponsored by the World Bank—six newly recruited staff, Statistics Sweden, Statistics Norway, and the French cooperation.
Mr. Adoum Gagoloum, STATAFRIC’s Chief economist commended the EU and Eurostat for their enduring and impactful support to the African statistical system.
STATAFRIC: a young institution in the making
The African Union Institute of Statistics (STATAFRIC) was officially established in January 2013 during an important summit that underscored the need for a coordinated approach to statistical data across Africa. Its mandate stems from the Strategy for the Harmonization of Statistics in Africa II (SHaSA II), which aims to build a reliable African Statistical System (AfSS), guaranteeing comparable, high-quality data to inform public policy and strategic decisions.
STATAFRIC officially commenced its activities in 2019. While it is currently in the early stages of development, STATAFRIC aspires to ultimately fulfil a function like that of Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, which has established itself as a world reference in the production, coordination and dissemination of European statistics. Eurostat, created in 1953, has taken decades to structure a harmonized, high-performance statistical framework on a European scale. In the same way, STATAFRIC intends to gradually position itself as the central player in the development of statistics in Africa, by developing tools and standards adapted to the continent's specific features.
