1. IAOS 26 General Assembly

The 2026 IAOS General Assembly will be held during the IAOS 26 conference in Vilnius.  Members who have items for discussion at the General Assembly should submit them ASAP at ContactIAOS@gmail.com.

The final agenda, with papers, meeting venue and time, together with information about connection options for members not able to attend the General Assembly in person, will be available in mid-April.

2. 20^th IAOS Conference – Vilnius, Lithuania, 12-14 May 2016 update

We are pleased to share important practical information regarding the IAOS 2026 Conference to be held in Vilnius on 12–14 May 2026.

CONFERENCE VENUE

The IAOS 2026 Vilnius Conference will take place at the Radisson Blu Hotel Lietuva, located on the banks of the River Neris in the heart of Vilnius. This venue offers an excellent base for exploring Lithuania’s vibrant capital. The charming Vilnius Old Town — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — is just a 10-minute walk away, along with landmarks such as Vilnius Cathedral and Gediminas Castle Tower.

Further practical details about transportation and accommodation are available on the conference website.

SHORT COURSES – 11 MAY 2026

Two full-day short courses will take place on 11 May 2026, prior to the main Conference.  These will be hosted at the Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics of Vilnius University. Registration for short courses is available through the conference website. Participants are invited to create or log in to their account to secure their place.

1. Integrating Non-Probability Samples: A Modern Approach to Official Statistics
   Delivered by the State Data Agency (Statistics Lithuania) – Instructors: Dr. Andrius Čiginas, Ieva Ramašauskienė, Donatas Šlevinskas
   This course provides a practical framework for integrating probability and non-probability samples, covering propensity-score adjustment, calibration techniques, doubly robust estimation, and design-oriented integration strategies. The training includes applied examples from official statistics production, including census, tourism, and business statistics.
2. AI, GIS, and Data Science for Statistics
   Delivered by Esri – Instructors: Kate Hess and Lydia Troup

   This hands-on course will explore the intersection of AI, GIS, and data science for official statistics. Participants will learn about GeoAI fundamentals, deep learning for imagery, spatial predictive analytics, large language models, and building interactive applications for data exploration.

Please note that both courses are full-day sessions and will run in parallel. The detailed agendas will be announced shortly.

As places are limited, please register as soon as possible.

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMME

The detailed Conference Programme, including Keynote Addresses, will be announced soon on the Conference website. The conference promises to have a rich and engaging agenda addressing the most inspiring developments and innovations in official statistics worldwide.

3. IPS Proposals for the 2027 WSC in Zambia – New deadline – now 16 June 2026

IAOS is looking forward with enthusiasm to the 66th ISI World Statistics Congress (WSC), to be held from 11-15 July 2027 in Lusaka, Zambia.

We heartily encourage submission of a wide range of proposals for Invited Paper Sessions (IPS) at WSC 2027.  The deadline for proposals has been extended to 16 June, 2026. Guidelines for Sessions Organisers are at Guidelines for Session Organisers, Chairs, Presenters and Discussants.  There is also A step-by-step guide on how to submit your IPS proposal in the system  Proposals will be reviewed through the standard invited-session evaluation process.

The portal for submission of Invited Session Proposals is here. For any questions about technical details of the proposal submission process, please e-mail: scientific@isi-wsc.org.

4. Small Area Estimation 2026 conference (SAE 2026), 15–19 June 2026, Bucharest, Romania

IAOS is pleased to be a co-sponsor of the SAE 2026 conference. This international conference will serve as a bridge among statisticians, survey methodologists, economists, engineers, mathematicians, computer scientists, and others interested in combining information from multiple sources to make reliable inferences at granular levels. In addition to traditional small area estimation topics, the conference will cover emerging themes in survey and official statistics (e.g., nonprobability sampling, record linkage, data fusion, etc.).

For more information, including registration details see – https://sae2026.faa.ro/

5. SJIAOS – Volume 42, Issue 1 – March 2026

A glimpse into the content of the latest issue, which will be available from 18 March 2026 at https://journals.sagepub.com/toc/SJI/current

This issue, the last under the editorship of Pietro Gennari, begins with a timely editorial – “Can Official Statistics Survive the Collapse of Public Trust?“ This editorial addresses the reasons and potential remedies of one of the defining challenges for official statistics today: a growing crisis of public confidence. Drawing on trends such as the Edelman Trust Barometer and high-profile examples from the US and UK, it shows how NSOs face challenges on two fronts: competence (whether statistics accurately capture lived realities) and integrity (whether they are seen as politically neutral).

The issue also includes three special sections –

1. The 2025 Revisions to the System of National Accounts (SNA) and Balance of Payments Manual (BPM). – the most significant overhaul of international macroeconomic statistical standards in over a decade.
2. Papers from the 2025 New Techniques and Technologies for Statistics (NTTS) Conference.
3. Winning papers from the 2025 IAOS Prize for Young Statisticians competition. All three papers published focus on the use of new methods and techniques for the production of official statistics.

The issue also includes 8 other papers capturing issues across emerging and enduring challenges in official statistics.

Once again the IAOS thanks Pietro for his commitment to the SJIAOS during his time as Editor in Chief and welcomes Hossain Hasani, the incoming Editor in Chief.

6. Recordings of recent IAOS Webinars –

Since our February members update, the IAOS family has held two webinars.  In case you missed either of them, you can review them at

1. 40th Anniversary Webinar – This featured past Presidents Jean Louis Bodin, Stephen Penneck, Denise Lievesley and Ola Awad, reviewing the history of the IAOS, as well as a glimpse of the future. The recording is available at https://www3.stats.govt.nz/IAOS_40th_Anniversary_Webinar-20260226/
2. Friends of Official Statistics (FOS) webinar – This webinar, held as a side event to the recent UN Statistical Commission, explored how the FOS Network can support efforts to uphold and strengthen the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics.  The webinar also discussed how the FOS Network could support the United Nations Consultative Advisory Board on the FPOS .  The recording is at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMwPkXAt6tI

In addition to running our own webinars, there is the potential for IAOS to use the ISI Academy platform. If you are interested in presenting a webinar, please contact me through contactIAOS@gmail.com.

7. IAOS 2026 Young Statistician Prize – closes 10 April 2026

A reminder that the IAOS 2026 Young Statistician Prize closes on  10 April 2026.  This is a chance for young official statisticians to enter and for older statisticians to support colleagues through mentoring.  See https://iaos-isi.org/ysp/ , for more information.