The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) will provide a grant of 21 million kronor (about 40m lei) to Moldova to improve the institutional capacity of the National Bureau of Statistics with a view to producing statistics in accordance with the European and international standards. The agreement was signed on March 18, IPN reports.

Lucia Spoiala, director general of the National Bureau of Statistics, said that the areas that will benefit from assistance are connected with the creation of national accounts and macroeconomic analyses, statistical infrastructure, foreign trade infrastructure, etc.

Swedish Ambassador to Moldova Ingrid Tersman said that the Central Statistics Office of Sweden has cooperated with Moldova’s National Bureau of Statistics for many years and the Swedish experts are glad to continue this cooperation in new conditions. According to her, the compilation of statistical data in compliance with the European standards is very important for Moldova in the period when the Agreement on the Creation of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with the EU is negotiated.

”The accurate statistical data enable the state institutions to formulate viable policies. On the other hand, for civil society statistics is an instrument for determining how the promises made by the authorities to the voters are fulfilled,” said his excellence.

The project will last for four years.