Data Strategies Playbook
Today, DG is pleased to announce the publication of our latest white paper, Designing Data Strategies: A Playbook for Action.
In this paper, we have identified six components for the design and operationalization of institutional data strategies: This work aims to distill lessons learned from Development Gateway’s research and collaboration, designing data strategies with development and humanitarian agencies. In the current ‘data revolution’ era, data and digital are both a strategic asset and a source of institutional risk.
Strategies should be designed using:
- a holistic approach,
- intentional leadership positioning, and
- a focus on the “right” investments.
Strategies should be operationalized through:
- responsible data practice,
- shared data use practices, and
- an appropriate governance plan.
We are continuously learning from our partners across various agencies, and hope this will be a useful starting point that may be adapted by organizational leaders to drive effective digital and data strategies in their institutional contexts.
Feedback about the approach outlined in this paper is welcome! Continue the conversation on social media using #DataStrategyPlaybook or by tagging @dgateway.
Share
Related Posts

The Cancer-Tobacco Link: Using Data to Drive Stronger Tobacco Control Policies
As we observe World Cancer Day today, it is crucial to recognize the significant role smoking plays in the global cancer epidemic. Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of cancer and cancer-related deaths worldwide, necessitating a dynamic, multidisciplinary approach to tobacco control interventions. DG’s Tobacco Control Data Initiative (TCDI) contains country-specific websites designed to

How useful is AI for development? Three things we learned from conversations with development experts
The development world is buzzing with excitement over the idea that new and emerging applications of artificial intelligence (AI) can supercharge economic growth, accelerate climate change mitigation, improve healthcare in rural areas, reduce inequalities, and more. But what does this look like in real life?

The Future of Technology Governance and Global Development: Why DG Brought DataReady In-house
DG is excited to announce we now have more robust data governance advisory services with the recent integration of DataReady.
As digital tools proliferate, automated analysis and decision-making algorithms spread, and cyberspace becomes more geopoliticized and contested, Development Gateway: An IREX Venture (DG) has strengthened its belief that data and digital solutions are key in creating more effective, responsive, inclusive, and trusted public-serving institutions. In an effort to further enrich our current data governance services, we’re pleased to announce that DG acquired DataReady in 2024. Founded in 2018, DataReady was a social enterprise with a mission to help the sustainable development and humanitarian sectors navigate the complexities of data governance.
At DG, we define data governance as the processes that establish the rules and norms related to data collection, management, and use. We believe that data governance processes within decision-making bodies should be inclusive, participatory, transparent, accountable, and led by multiple stakeholders.
Fundamental to DataReady’s ethos was that data governance is primarily about the processes through which rules and norms are set; these rules and norms, in turn, shape data collection, management, and use. Based on this understanding, DataReady’s approach was to engage with the institutional and individual-level dimensions of the digital and data revolutions, ensuring that human rights-based approaches and ethical standards are baked into innovation and policy. This approach aligns well with DG’s standard of prioritizing local ownership and governance of data and creating “fit for context,” sector-specific approaches to data governance frameworks that enable their long-term use.
Both DG and DataReady also share a commitment to strengthening institutions, empowering individuals, supporting youth, and designing and implementing digital and data programs that improve people’s lives. Continuing to build out DG’s data governance advisory capacity through adapting the innovative DataReady approach is an exciting step toward both implementing and advocating for a better, fairer future for digital development across the globe.
Check out the full video in which DG’s CEO Josh Powell and DataReady founder Tom Orrell discuss the ways in which this new consolidation will further strengthen DG’s data governance service offerings and capacity to embed strong digital and data governance practice at the core of every DG project and engagement.