234. The following recommendations are made for a better understanding of migration movements:

(a) Use multiple data sources to estimate emigration. Integration of data from different sources, such as the population census, administrative data, including border records, and mirror statistics, can enhance the richness of data and reduce coverage or accuracy problems..

(b) Explore the use of alternate or new data sources. New non-conventional data sources can be useful for producing migration statistics when used in combination with conventional sources. Countries should explore the use of non-conventional data sources such as mobile phone, credit card and social network data and share their findings.

(c) Linked data can provide further insight into emigration patterns. When using administrative data sources, countries should explore how these could be used by linking to other sources and how this could improve the quality and richness of breakdowns produced.

(d) Reach out to further countries to understand if any produce a breakdown by reason for emigration. Investigate alternative or new data sources that may be able to provide this data that could be modelled or linked to current emigration statistics.

(e) Timely migration statistics are important for policy and planning. Countries should explore how modelling can improve the timeliness of estimates while still ensuring accuracy and learning from countries who already model their estimates.

235. The following recommendations are made for the validation of emigration estimates:

(a) The integration of multiple data sources for validation. By combining administrative records, survey data, and other indirect indicators, NSOs can validate their statistics to produce more reliable estimates. This validation includes the strengths and limitations of each data source and, as a result, enhances the credibility of emigration estimates and allows for ongoing quality monitoring. It is recommended to pursue multiple data source validation strategies and consider adopting interactive tools, such as dashboards, to enhance monitoring and improve the validation process.

(b) The use of external validation sources such as mirror statistics and diaspora data from key destination countries to cross-check and improve their emigration estimates. These comparative methods help identify underreporting or data inconsistencies that can have a bigger impact on emigration data from the source country. Countries should be aware of the risks when using mirror statistics to evaluate their emigration estimates as circular validation may occur. However, it is recommended to promote the use of such international data sources to validate and refine emigration statistics;

(c) National statistical offices can also support other national statistical offices’ efforts to improve and validate emigration data by facilitating the use of their own immigration statistics. The production of high-quality immigration statistics by single country of previous residence and other data breakdowns is indeed crucial to support the use of mirror statistics by other countries.

(d) The importance of publishing quantitative uncertainty measures such as confidence intervals, precocity errors or explanatory notes. These indicators can provide users critical insight into the reliability of emigration estimates and improve transparency. It is recommended to expand and systematize the publication of uncertainty measures even if they are preliminary as these indicators improve transparency and foster better informed decision-making in a timely manner;

236. The following recommendations are made for data sharing:

(a) If contacted by other national statistical offices, statistical offices are encouraged to share immigration statistics with the available breakdowns to enable timely use of mirror statistics. When data sharing platforms are available, national statistical offices may share their migration flows data, including provisional estimates, on such platforms as early as possible each year. If data-sharing frameworks are in place, data may also include additional data breakdowns or individual-level data not publicly disseminated due to confidentiality or other reasons.

(b) These data should also be made easily accessible and publicly available, with detailed metadata, to facilitate their use by other countries.

(c) Metadata should clearly describe the definitions, sources, coverage and accuracy of the data produced, allowing other countries to assess their comparability and usefulness.

(d) Ensure that all data sharing adheres to statistical disclosure control protocols.

(e) Since emigration involves at least two countries, international collaboration also plays an increasingly important role in strengthening the evaluation and communication of emigration statistics. Case studies demonstrate that regular exchange of experiences, data sharing and alignment of methodologies and best practices among NSOs can support continuous improvement and innovation. It is recommended to engage in peer collaboration, both regionally and internationally. This fosters knowledge exchange and supports the identification of gaps and opportunities for improvement in a context where international migration is increasingly complex.

(f) Developing legal frameworks for monitoring migration flows among countries of the EU and between other countries, including arrangements for the secure and legally compliant sharing of individual-level data, could be explored further as one possible avenue for improving the comparability and quality of migration statistics in the future.

237. Countries interested in implementing the recommendations contained in this guidance should continue to exchange experiences internationally, for instance at the meetings of the Group of Experts on Statistics on Population and Migration organized annually by UNECE. In particular, countries should convene two to three years following the completion of this task force’s mandate to exchange experience and review progress.