We are very happy to have produced this policy briefing for our friends at the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, the United Nations, and the World Bank. It is part of a call to action for high-quality data to be at the foundation of investments in sustainable development, pandemic recovery, climate action, and emergency response.
Across the world, governments are making decisions in the dark. Shockingly, more than a quarter of children – and over half of those born in sub-Saharan Africa – were not registered at birth. Without evidence of their existence, how can governments implement policies to ensure they have access to healthcare, education and other basic rights? This crucial data is most lacking in fragile settings where people are at highest risk – nearly a third of complete data is missing from humanitarian crises. With brute force, the COVID-19 pandemic has shone a spotlight on the necessity for better data capabilities to meet social and economic development needs, and to protect people and planet in the face of crises.
We have therefore produced this policy briefing as part of a vital campaign to unlock the power of data for a better, greener, and safer future. The campaign is being launched at a high-level ministerial roundtable at the World Bank Spring Meetings convened by World Bank Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, Carmen Reinhart, World Bank Managing Director for Development Policy and Partnerships, Mari Pangestu, and UN Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed. It will bring together global champions of ‘investment in data with purpose’ to launch a new advocacy effort and build critical momentum towards a High-Level Event at the UN General Assembly in September 2022.
Follow us on Twitter to keep up to date with our work throughout the campaign, and read the full policy briefing below:
