
Stories, ideas, and updates from DGers around the world
The Development Gateway: An IREX Venture blog is where DGers share specific learnings, offer thought-provoking insights, and pose challenging questions for the sustainable development community derived from our work.
Our blog has a deep archive going back to 2005. Each post is a snapshot into our work, priorities, and values.

Coordinating UN Development Efforts for Better Results
One of the biggest challenges facing a complex entity like the United Nations Development Group (UNDG) is how to coordinate efforts across the 32 agencies, departments, and programs that play a role in the UN’s development work. Coordination means collecting and standardizing data from dozens of offices managing thousands of activities to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, coherence and relevance of UN development assistance.

Applying M&E to the Open Data Movement
Since its very beginning, Development Gateway has been committed to open data initiatives, and without a doubt great strides have been made in open data acceptance and adoption. More and more development organizations, practitioners, and national governments have begun publishing all sorts of programmatic and financial information.

Harnessing the Data Revolution
What will it take to transform data and technology into improved development outcomes?

M&E Tech Recap
Last week, Development Gateway participated in the M&E Tech Conference – moderating two panels and participating in a hands-on session. Below are highlights from each:How Can We Leverage Open Data to Enhance Results?DG’s Senior Director of Operations and Co-Executive Director of AidData Nancy McGuire Choi spearheaded a discussion with Kat Townsend (USAID), Chantale Wong (Independent), Rob Baker (Ushahidi), and Susan Stout (Georgetown).

The Challenges of #Data4Impact
We often assume that more Open Data is better – but is it?

Open Contracting in Nepal: Could it be a game changer?
This is a modified version of a post originally published on Open Nepal’s blog, authored by Anjesh Tuladhar.No one would disagree with the fact that proactive disclosure of public contracts by public agencies improves service delivery, curbs corruption, and helps monitoring. Laura Bacon says open contracting could be a game changer.

South-South Cooperation: An Expanding Modality
In early May, we highlighted the importance of tracking South-South Cooperation (SSC), the exchange of financial and in-kind aid between developing countries. On the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, we wanted to highlight some updates about SSC across the Western Hemisphere.Tracking SSC Spending for Information Accuracy

Test Driving the Open Contracting Data Standard
Development Gateway’s dgMarket was one of the first global e-procurement platforms. Since 2003, dgMarket has aggregated tender notices, contract awards and bidding documents from national governments and development agencies. dgMarket now lists over a million opportunities every year from 170 countries, representing around $1 trillion in government procurement.

Peace in Numbers
For years, Big Data – enormous amounts of information from a variety of sources, covering a range of topics – has been recognized as a resource for evaluating the impact and benefit of development projects. Increasingly, implementers, governments, and citizens are working in concert to use this data to shape domestic policy and multilateral programming.But what if we could use Big Data to not only influence national programming and international procedures; what if we harness Big Data to secure physical and material peace and security for all?

Geocoding 101: A Behind the Scenes Look at Visualizing Aid and Development
I often get asked how AidData takes vast stores of development finance information and translates them into something that can be easily understood by the public. Last week, we published our geocoded data on aid flows to Nepal via the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) registry. Now anyone can easily download the data from our IATI publisher page or aiddata.org to understand who is funding what and where.