Other Research — Publications

ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT 2022: G7 Partnership for Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Africa

In 2019, with an estimated 250 million women in Sub-Saharan Africa facing financial exclusion, under the French Presidency, the G7 Partnership for Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Africa (G7P) was created to promote social equality and reduce the digital gender divide by realizing the value of digital financial services and supporting African governments, regulators, banks, and financial institutions to build more gender-inclusive, sustainable, and responsible digital financial systems. The G7P brings together a myriad of existing institutions working in Africa on complementary issues of research, investment, and regulation around digital finance and its potential benefits for women. This report addresses the request from the French G7 Presidency to support greater transparency and accountability across G7 initiatives. This year’s report focuses on the theme of “trust” and offers reflections on the progress of the collaborative in its second full year of implementation and provides recommendations for improving its collective impact.

Other ResearchTReNDS StaffSeptember 23, 2022G7 Partnership, Digital Financial Inclusion, Accountability

ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT 2021: G7 Partnership for Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Africa

An estimated 400 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa lack a financial account, and 60% of these individuals are women. And while the rise of the digital financial services (DFS) sector has the potential to disrupt old gender divides, a number of barriers still need to be overcome. In 2019, the G7 recognized the potential of DFS for promoting its mission of social equality. This commitment resulted in the creation of The G7 Partnership for Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Africa (G7P) which draws financial contributions from France, the UK, and the Gates Foundation and implementation strength from the World Bank, UNCDF, AFDB, Oxford School, AfDB, and J-PAL. This report tracks the implementation progress of the partnership and offers suggestions to improve partnership performance.

Other ResearchTReNDS StaffSeptember 28, 2021G7 Partnership, Digital Financial Inclusion, Accountability

Counting on the World to Act: A Roadmap for Governments to Achieve Modern Data Systems for Sustainable Development

In Counting on the World to Act, TReNDS details an action plan for governments and their development partners that will enable them to deliver the SDGs worldwide by 2030. Our recommendations specifically aim to empower government actors – whether national statisticians, chief data scientists, chief data officers, ministers of planning, or others concerned with evidence in support of sustainable development – to advocate for, build, and lead a new data ecosystem.

Other ResearchTReNDS StaffOctober 7, 2019Counting on the World, data governance

Maximizing Access to Public Data

As quantities of data have increased around the world, calls for publicly-produced data to be made freely available have also increased. What should happen in the exceptional cases where data cannot be made open by administrative authorities? What are legitimate reasons for nondisclosure of public information? These and other questions are addressed in this brief, written by Open Data Watch for TReNDS.

Other ResearchTReNDS StaffMarch 4, 2019data sharing, open data, Open Data

Civil registration and vital statistics benefit health, child protection, and governance

Civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) record births, deaths, and other major life events that are essential to understanding the development of a country and its people. The associated personal identification and data are critical to ensuring human rights and the monitoring of 12 of the 17 SDGs. Yet CRVS gaps persist, and calculations suggest that 77 of the 100 countries still without a functioning CRVS system will collectively require US$220 million in investments.

Handpump data improves water access

With two-thirds of the world’s population facing water scarcity at some point during a year, and with one-third of handpumps in rural Africa inoperable at any time, increasing the reliability and functionality of water services is essential to sustainable development. The Smart Handpump Project, initiated at the University of Oxford, is improving water services in rural Kenya through sensors installed on handpumps in the region.

Household surveys shape policy investment

The Living Standards Measurement Survey (LSMS), housed within the Development Data Group of the World Bank, is one of the largest and longest-running household survey programs. To date, it has supported more than 100 LSMS-based national surveys and it has had a profound impact on many countries’ policies and investments.

Valuation of the New Zealand Census

New Zealand has conducted its census since 1851, providing a vital source of data about the size and demographics of the country’s population. A valuation of the census was performed in 2014. Even though the scope was limited to a select number of quantifiable applications, the study found that the census would return New Zealand (NZ) $5 to the national economy over the next 25 years for every NZ$1 invested.

Improved data governance leads to better economic outcomes for Philippine citizens

In 2013, the Philippines Government enacted legislation that merged four existing data-producing agencies into one comprehensive Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). This group has improved the timeliness of national and regional accounts, opened up national statistical data, innovated the way the Philippines conducts household surveys and censuses to enable geotagging and geospatial analytics, and is now coordinating a new national identification system.

Landsat's earth observation data support disease prediction, solutions to pollution, and more

How can open access to earth imagery help predict disease spread or identify solutions to toxic waterways? The Landsat program–the longest-standing continuous global record of the Earth’s surface through satellite imagery–has enabled these and other solutions in support of people, planet, and prosperity since its launch in the 1970s.

Original thought leadership, lessons in data production and use, and critical evaluation of pilot projects.

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