Publications

This report discusses the importance of the oversight bodies in ensuring the proper implementation right to information (RTI) legislation through an examination of the Global Data Barometer's two indicators that evaluate the implementation of API laws, focusing on data relevant to Latin America. Several recommendations are shared to complement UNESCO's efforts for data collection (through the annual survey) and reporting on SDG indicator 16.10.2.

The purpose of this Charter is to establish a shared understanding of the terms of reference for membership within the Data for Development Network, its governance structure and protocols, and the roles and responsibilities of its member organisations.

This Case Study provides insights into the partnership between several Chilean companies that collect retail barcode data and the Chile National Institute of Statistics (INE), which then combines this data with traditional survey data to produce the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

This Case Study information on Meta’s Data for Good initiative, which produces maps, surveys and user findings that could, in theory, support policy and decision-making by governments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The document identifies opportunities and challenges for using its products in the region. Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

Considering the private sector’s expertise, data, and ability to collect data, it can potentially play a crucial role in achieving the SDGs. This Case Study provides information on Microsoft’s support to the public sector in Asia through four data initiatives that aim to make data freely accessible and available for better use, ultimately contributing to achieving the SDGs.

Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

This Case Study information on how the non-profit Trust for the Americas works to facilitate establishing public-private initiatives in the Caribbean focused on digital skills development, youth education and training, employability, and community development.

Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

Combining the private sector’s expertise with the public sector’s capacity can accelerate sustainable development. This Case Study into insight into Pulse Lab Jakarta’s facilitating role in building public-private partnerships across Asia with initiatives to optimize the information needed in policymaking by bringing together stakeholders and working on data science methods and social research.

Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

This Case Study provides insights into the partnership between several private providers of spatial data and Vihiga County Government in Kenya in establishing public-private initiatives. A collaboration between the county government of Vihiga and partners who have the data and the technology and skills to make it usable was particularly valuable in making this new source of data for decision making accessible to those who need it most.

Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

This document presents the main characteristics and lessons of a data for public good initiative carried out by Dymaxion Labs, an Argentine startup that applies machine learning and computer vision techniques to extract information from satellite images. Pertinently for this project, Dymaxion Labs combines its business operations with an explicit commitment to the SDGs and is committed to contributing its work to the open-source community. Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

This Case Study provides insights into the partnership between KaraAgro, a technological services company with expertise in Artificial Intelligence and Drones, and the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI) to accelerate the development of new varieties of cowpea.

Private Sector Data for Sustainable Development Publication Series

This edition of Latin America in a Glimpse is the result of an open call to Latin American organizations to present research undertaken during 2022. There are four investigations conducted by Latin American organizations working in different countries: Corporación Cambio Sostenible of Colombia, Fundación Openlab of Ecuador, Espacio Público of Venezuela and MariaLab of Brazil.

This report seeks to counteract bias by reconstructing the experiences of those who live in informal popular neighbourhoods in Latin America. Through a qualitative study of three cases located Buenos Aires, Mexico City, and São Paulo, we propose to interpret the impact of connectivity and understand the strategies developed and key actors involved.

This report focuses on four key thematic areas: AI and Data; AI and Innovation; AI Use and Impact in Health, Agriculture, Legal, and Creative Fields; and Responsible AI. It highlights the challenges facing AI adoption in Africa, including ill-equipped policy frameworks, ethics, skills and capacity, and a need for a structured data ecosystem. Prepared by the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law (CIPIT).

This report provides a deep dive into future phenomena that are expected to shape data and digital technologies over the next 10 to 15 years, offering insights to develop research, policies, and action plans toward a more inclusive and sustainable world.

Is it possible to develop AI without reproducing logics of oppression? This document invites us to reflect on how we understand the field of AI and Latin America’s participation, on what discrimination problems are associated with how the AI field is currently configured, and on what alternative proposals for careful data management exist - it is about trying to understand how feminist practices can lay the foundation for developing an inclusive AI with hope for social justice.

This study looks at the rise of Kenyan AI eHealth platforms and assesses whether the privacy initiatives in place meet legal standards stipulated in strategic policies, acts of parliament, and relevant international legal standards. It also assesses the efficacy of the privacy policies from the viewpoint of an average Kenyan.

Open data can be a powerful resource for informing policies, increasing transparency, and measuring progress. But making data open requires commitment, organization, and technical capacity. We offer this guide to shape discussion and serve as a reminder of the progress made to date, the persistent challenges in the open data space, and the opportunities for overcoming those challenges.

Data is the focus of this report. Drawing on the first edition of the Global data Barometer, it provides the most complete picture yet of the state of open data against political corruption — across nine policy areas in 67 countries participating in the Open Government Partnership (OGP). It identifies where countries are doing well and where they need to improve and identifies trends at the country, regional, and global level.

OD4D is an initiative that aims to increase the availability of quality Open Data (OD) and its use by actors in government, civil society, and the private sector for greater social good. 

Management welcomes the findings and recommendations of the evaluation and is pleased that the evaluation found that the OD4D program achieved and/or exceeded its targets. In particular, we note that the evaluators found that the program exceeded its goals to advance gender, equity, and inclusion in the Open Data field. 

This evaluation of the Open Data for Development (OD4D) program highlights progress made by OD4D during its Phase III of activities and the extent to which the program achieved its intended goals, and as well, identifies key lessons and recommendations for the future sustainability of the regional hubs and the network. 

This presentation maps the state of data financing, and will take you through emerging opportunities and what the future for data financing looks like. While financing for data is still concentrated in a few donors, new multilateral funds and renewal of existing funds create opportunities for partnership.

This study reflects a full review and synthesis of 24 projects that were delivered with funding from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) to support data capacity building for the purpose of identifying common themes (patterns), effectiveness criteria, and program design considerations.

This report presents a practical approach with a feminist perspective from Latin America to the development of AI. Is it possible to develop AI that does not reproduce logics of oppression? To answer this question, we focus on the power relations in the field of AI and make an interpretative analysis of the day-to-day experiences of seven women working in AI or data science in the region within dialogue a context of feminist principles and guidelines for the development and deployment of digital technologies.

This report provides an overview of the Global Data Barometer findings. The Barometer includes 39 primary indicators, and over 500 sub-questions, covering 109 countries (delivering more than 60,000 data points in total). This report explores just a few of them, providing a non-exhaustive overview of some of the topics that could be explored further using Barometer data.

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of reliable, accessible, and trusted health data to enable coordinated action. This policy brief compiled by the Global Data Barometer (GDB) considers three leading composite indicators focusing on vital statistics, real-time healthcare system capacity, and vaccines to answer a set of questions on the availability, accuracy, and timeliness of health and Covid-19 data.

The climate action data gap is strongly connected to the national governments’ commitments to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by countries worldwide. This Global Data Barometer climate action policy brief discusses the barriers hindering the effectiveness of climate action plans by identifying the missing data and the lack of collection and harmonization processes needed to support climate action.

Open Data Watch (ODW) reviews widely used performance indexes and assessment tools with references to the Data Value Chain (DVC) to identify similarities and differences in concept and coverage. These observations point toward the new Global Data Barometer as a more comprehensive measure that is needed to fully capture the functions of the data ecosystem.

The debate around data has never been more polarized. On one side, defenders of the “Free Flow of Data” highlight its positive effects on innovation and the digital transformation of economies and societies. On the other, proponents of “Data Sovereignty” are concerned about insufficient control over data use and misuse. This report recommends three key actions for moving forward.