October was another exciting month with the World Data Forum in Dubai. The event brought hundreds of development data experts together and resulted in the Dubai Declaration, which calls for a boost in financing for data and statistics. ODW also launched a new report, alongside AidData and PARIS21, and our new website. If there is something else to add, please contact us.
Moving away from quarterly posts, What’s Being Said will now be posted on a monthly basis so that the articles will be timelier and therefore more useful. Below we gather the relevant articles and reports in the SDG data revolution space for October.
October
BudgIT empowers Nigerian citizens through open data (October)
This case study on the value of data from SDSN TReNDS reviews how the civic startup BudgIT has been using open data to empower citizens. (source)
Open Data Policy and Freedom of Information Law: Understanding the relationship between the twin pillars of access to information (October)
This paper by the Sunlight Foundation analyzes the relationship between open data policy and freedom of information laws. The authors found that adopting an open data program significantly decreases the volume of public record requests received by cities and that this effect grows over time, among other significant findings. (source)
New Approaches to Statistical Capacity Development (October)
PARIS21 synthesized their experience in statistical capacity building into a set of guiding principles for capacity development which were presented and discussed in this recorded meeting. (source)
Using Data to Join up Development Efforts (October)
This note from the Interoperability Data Collaborative outlines the need for interoperability in development data and the five areas of interoperability that are covered in the Collaborative’s technical guide.(source)
National Planning, Monitoring and Reporting (October)
This presentation from Data for All’s executive director, Jon Kapp, outlines the features of their federated SDG national reporting platform. (source)
National symposium sheds light on benefits of open data (10/1)
The National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) in Oman, in cooperation with Information Technology Authority (ITA), held a three-day national symposium to shed light on the benefits of open data and to create a platform for dialogue between private and public sectors to expand such data. This is a report on the major outcomes from the symposium. (source)
What does new World Bank data tell us about progress on poverty? (10/2)
Zach Christensen, Senior Analyst at Development Initiatives, summarizes findings from the World Bank’s new release of poverty data. He finds that although progress is being made, the poorest 20% in the world are making slower progress than everyone else. (source)
The Missing Piece for Data: Financing the Revolution (10/2)
This article from GPSDD and SDSN summarizes the gap in financing for data for the data revolution and the financial benefits that data programs could provide. (source)
PODCAST: digital tech for the global good (10/3)
This podcast by UN News, recorded during High-Level week of the General Assembly, features some of the many experts, UN officials, and politicians who filled UN Headquarters during late September 2018. Topics that were covered included: how digital technology is being used to tackle some of the world’s biggest problems, climate change, and disaster relief. (source)
National data platforms for SDG reporting: Looking back and looking forward (10/10)
Katarina Rebello of CODE and Yves Jaques from UNICEF write in this blog post about the range of approaches and experiences that countries have taken in reporting on the SDGs. (source)
Opinion: Achieving the SDGs will require more than domestic resource mobilization (12/10)
Sanjeev Gupta from the Center for Global Development writes about the resource needs for achieving the SDGs. He notes that according to a recent IMF analysis, low-income developing countries will need resources equal to 14.4 percent of their gross domestic product on average to meet the Sustainable Development Goals in five areas: education, electricity, health, roads, and water. (source)
Defining a ‘data trust’ (10/19)
This report from the Open Data Institute is an investigation of ‘data trusts’ as an approach to stewarding data and includes summaries of upcoming pilots from the ODI to test them. (source)
Counting on statistics: What can data producers and donors do differently to increase use? (10/21)
This article summarizes findings from a new report by AidData and Open Data Watch which surveyed hundreds of national statistical office and other government officials in developing countries to understand what they need to better produce and use official statistics. (source)
World Data Forum wraps up with a declaration to boost financing for data and statistics (10/24)
An article from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs that outlines the highlights from the World Data Forum as well as the Dubai Declaration that was presented at the event. (source)
Introducing the online guide to the World Development Indicators: A new way to discover data on development (10/22)
This guide from the World Bank’s Data Team on the World Banks’s World Development Indicator’s Website, reviews the new features of the website that can be used for data-driven decision making. (source)
Dubai Declaration – Supporting the Implementation of the Cape Town Global Action Plan for Sustainable Development Data (10/24)
The Dubai declaration, launched at the 2018 World Data Forum, calls for innovative funding mechanism to strengthen capacity of national data and statistical systems. (source)
IISD Report: Move Beyond GDP to Measure Progress on Sustainable Development Goals (10/30)
A report from IISD offers a new, comprehensive wealth measure to compare to GDP growth. According to the IISD, this tool can be used by policymakers and citizens to understand the sustainability implications of their actions and to augment GDP measures. (source)
Measuring progress towards SDGs constrained by lack of comparable data on diet and nutrient intake (10/31)
This article from the World Health Organization Europe summarizes the main findings from their report on energy levels and nutrient intakes of children and adolescents across the WHO European Region. (source)
Governments fail to capitalise on swaths of open data (10/31)
This article from Valentina Romei of the Financial Times reports on how governments fail to capitalize on swaths of open data and how the “publish with purpose” movement and new partnerships with private companies could change that. (source)
Our Top Four Takeaways from the UN World Data Forum (10/31)
This report from Publish What You Fund outlines the organization’s top four takeaways from the 2018 UN World Data Forum. (source)