Statistical actions
Article 4
1. The production of Community statistics in the field of education and lifelong learning shall be implemented by individual statistical actions as follows: (a) the regular delivery of statistics on education and lifelong learning by the Member States, within specified deadlines for Domains 1 and 2; (b) the use of other statistical information systems and surveys, to provide additional statistical variables and indicators on education and lifelong learning, corresponding to Domain 3; (c) the development, improvement and updating of standards and manuals on statistical frameworks, concepts and methods; (d) the improvement of data quality, in the context of the quality framework, to include: — relevance, — accuracy, — timeliness and punctuality, — accessibility and clarity, — comparability, and — coherence. Available capacities within the Member States for data collection and the processing and development of concepts and methods shall be taken into account by the Commission. Where appropriate, special attention and consideration shall be given to the regional dimension of the data collected. Where appropriate, data shall be systematically broken down by gender. 2. Whenever possible, the Commission (Eurostat) shall seek cooperation with the UIS, the OECD and other international organisations with a view to ensuring international comparability of data and to avoid duplication of effort, in particular as regards the development and improvement of statistical concepts and methods and the delivery of statistics by the Member States. 3. Whenever significant new data requirements or insufficient quality of data are identified and before any data collection, the Commission (Eurostat) shall institute pilot studies to be completed on a voluntary basis by the Member States. Such pilot studies shall be carried out in order to assess the feasibility of the relevant data collection, taking into consideration the benefits of the availability of the data in relation to the collection costs and the burden on respondents. Pilot studies shall not necessarily lead to corresponding implementing measures.