Innovating for the Data Revolution

January 19, 2017
Josh Powell
Innovation

The next “big idea” in technology and data for development will not happen in a vacuum. At Development Gateway, we seek to innovate by working closely with our partners and clients, to solve their most important problems.

But what does this look like in practice? Our innovation bets typically take the form of providing time, or co-investing with our funders, to provide an individual or small team time to work on a prototype or idea. We strongly believe that DG is poised to conceptualize and build the next generation of products and services for furthering the data revolution.

Here are some current examples of our innovation portfolio, led by a wide mix of our talented team:

Open Contracting
We are building a comprehensive procurement transparency program, using the Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS); structured technical assessment and use case analyses, to guide program management and policy recommendation; and hands-on process, change management, data collection, and analytical training. In one year, we have scaled from a pilot program in Vietnam to activities in 9 countries worldwide.

IATI and Country Systems
For years, DG has been a leader in aid management, and an active participant in the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI). More recently, we have used this expertise to lead a combination of applied research, open source software development, and trainings to assist government partners seeking to benefit from IATI data use. We are also partnering with Development Initiatives to launch the first ever IATI-AIMS Fellowship, modeled on our successful Aid Management Fellows program.

Country Tools for the SDGs
Using our own internal funds, DG is building out technical tools, trainings, and process approaches for the country-level capture, reporting, and use of data to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Linking indicator and resource data – informed by our Aid Management Program, Results Data Initiative, and Tanzania Sectoral Dashboard work – we aim to help governments manage for the SDGs at both national and local levels.

This article is excerpted from DG’s 2016 Annual Report, which you may download or view online.

Share This Post

Related from our library

Stakeholder, Where Art Thou?: Three Insights on Using Governance Structures to Foster Stakeholder Engagement

Through our Tobacco Control Data Initiative (TCDI) program and its sister program Data on Youth and Tobacco in Africa (DaYTA), we have learned that creating governance structures, such as advisory boards or steering committees, is one approach to ensuring that digital solutions appropriately meet stakeholders’ needs and foster future stakeholder engagement. In this blog, we explore three insights on how governance structures can advance buy-in with individual stakeholders while connecting them to one another.

July 16, 2024 Health, Process & Tools
DG’s Open Contracting Portal Designated as a Digital Public Good

Digital Public Goods Alliance designated DG’s Open Contracting Portal as a digital public good in September 2022. The Portal provides procurement analytics that can be used to improve procurement efficiency and, in turn, reduce corruption and increase impact.

December 6, 2022 Open Contracting and Procurement Analytics, Process & Tools
To Enable W-SMEs to Thrive in Côte d’Ivoire We Start by Listening to their Data and Digital Needs

This blog is co-written by Development Gateway’s Aminata Camara, Senior Consultant; Kathryn Alexander, Senior Program Advisor; and MCC‘s Agnieszka Rawa, Managing Director of Data Collaboratives for Local Impact (DCLI). On June 28th, 2021, MCC, USAID, Microsoft, Thinkroom, and Development Gateway will be co-hosting a workshop to share, validate, inform, and build on recent research on

June 24, 2021