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Explore challenges and themes in utilizing ICTs for governance data in the Arab Region. Discover the impacts, partnerships, and implications for moving forward.
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Comparative Research on ICTs and Governance Data in Arab Region Christopher Wilson, UNDP Oslo Governance Centre
ICTs & Governance Data • Broad scope • (sms surveys, big data, open government) • In the Arab Region • Mapping problems • Monitoring performance
General Challenges • Penetration • Representation • Proliferation and institutionalization
Comparative Research Report • 27 national initiatives • Generating, aggregating or disseminating data on governance • 10 semi-structured interviews • Background, • End users, • Platform, • Stakeholders, and • Impact
Common Themes • Impact metrics are a problem, but all self-reported positive impact • Transparency consistently stymied by political processes • There is a consistent lack of coordination between offline and online activity.
Common Themes • The majority of initiatives using ICT have weak partnerships with local and national government. • Government institutions are outdated, lacking the political will for reform, and operating with limited knowledge of contemporary ICTs. • Despite the lack of government capacity, mid-level civil servants may be allies for reform efforts.
Common Themes • The relationship to national media is highly varied • over-reliance on social media for outreach at the expense of other mediums. • Perceived need to reach out to traditional media. • attention of traditional media considered success. • The relationship between ICT projects and traditional media is increasingly symbiotic.
Common Themes • Internet exclusion & the promise of mobile phones. “Despite these efforts, mobile appears to have limitations, and did not result in large user engagement rates or repeat user conversions. The interviewees had theories [but] none of the interviewees had been able to conclusively isolate these challenges through field observations or research.”
Common Themes • Competition among ICT initiatives exists, and could be fracture reform efforts and reduce impact.
Implications & Questions • Promoting and questioning the reliability of data • Engaging in questions of accessibility
Moving Forward • Sharing across countries and contexts • Technology • Strategies • Partnerships and Capacities • Information on multiple platforms
Moving Forward (2) • Understanding Actionable Data • Accessible • Relevant • Manageable • For UNDP • Supporting local collaboration • Convening multi-stakeholder actors