The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) of the Council of Europe is an independent human rights monitoring body specialised in combating racism and racial discrimination.

In the framework of its country-by-country monitoring and of its work on General Policy Recommendations, ECRI calls on governments to combat racial discrimination against vulnerable groups. ECRI stresses the necessity of closely following the situation in order to determine the extent of racial discrimination, and the areas in which it takes place. This is why ECRI regularly recommends to the governments of member States of the Council of Europe to collect relevant data broken down according to categories such as nationality, national or ethnic origin, language and religion. ECRI demands of governments that they ensure that this is done in all cases with due respect for the principles of confidentiality, informed consent and the voluntary self-identification of persons as belonging to a particular group.

ECRI is of the opinion that the collection of ethnic data is a beneficial instrument for shaping sound policies against racism and racial discrimination and for promoting equal opportunities. This data can provide baseline information on the situation of minority groups, which will then form the basis for social policies and later help in evaluating their progress. Collecting ethnic data helps to monitor discrimination and the implementation of anti-discrimination policies that have been put in place by governments. It also serves to assess whether these policies are effective, so that any necessary changes and adjustments may be made.

However, ECRI is also aware of the reluctance which surrounds the issue of ethnic data collection. Among the various types of data to be collected, there are different levels of consensus among the member States. The issue of using ethnicity as an analytic or even simply descriptive category is far from being clear-cut in a number of member States, and the ideological and ethical aspects which lead to different approaches in different member States should therefore be taken into consideration. Lastly, some laws concerning the protection of data are sometimes wrongly interpreted as being insurmountable obstacles to ethnic data collection.

This is why ECRI undertook a consultation process on the issue of ethnic data collection. A consultation meeting with international non-governmental organisations was held and a seminar with national specialised bodies to combat racism and racial discrimination was organised.

This study was commissioned by ECRI to follow up on the results of this consultation with a view to giving an overview of the existing legal and practical framework for ethnic data collection in member States. ECRI hopes that this publication will contribute to a more thorough understanding of what is covered by ethnic data collection, and that it will be useful in all circles which participate in the fight against racism and racial discrimination at national and international level.