Evidence-Informed Policymaking: Education Data-Driven Decision Mapping in Kenya and Senegal
Between December 2022 and February 2024, Development Gateway: An IREX Venture (DG) and IREX, funded by the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, conducted research in Kenya and Senegal to explore the complexities of education data supply, access, and decision-making processes. Effective decision-making in education relies on reliable, comparable, and accessible data managed through efficient information systems, facilitating resource optimization and goal monitoring. However, many countries, including Kenya and Senegal, experience challenges with unreliable education data, limited data utilization for decision-making, and insufficient national capacity to manage and leverage data effectively.
The research, employing DG’s Custom Assessment and Landscape Methodology (CALM), involved a desk review, stakeholder consultations, interviews, and validation workshops. Rather than an evaluation or comprehensive diagnostic, the study aimed to gather diverse perspectives and stories from stakeholders to contribute to ongoing discussions, technical investments, and reform efforts. We present key findings in Kenya and Senegal, before comparing and identifying shared characteristics that may be useful to assess in other country contexts.
A Discussion of DG’s Strategic Partnership with IREX
In October, Development Gateway and IREX announced the formation of a strategic partnership. The partnership will combine IREX’s expertise, forward-leaning solutions, global footprint, and systems for tracking, measuring, and learning with Development Gateway’s innovative use of data, technology, and evidence. IREX and Development Gateway are poised to achieve even stronger results when empowering youth, building more effective and inclusive institutions, and improving education systems and learning outcomes.
Here Kristin Lord, President & CEO of IREX and Josh Powell, CEO of Development Gateway discuss the benefits of the partnership.
Announcing a New Board Chair & Six New Board Members
Development Gateway, An IREX Venture is pleased to announce the appointment of a new chair and six new members of the Board of Directors. The new chair and directors will provide strategic direction and guidance to Development Gateway’s work supporting decision-makers around the world to better collect, visualize, and use data to inform planning, policy, and programming; furthering transparency and accountability.
Development Gateway and IREX Announce a Strategic Partnership
Today we announce a new strategic partnership between Development Gateway & IREX, which positions DG as a subsidiary of IREX. The partnership will combine IREX’s thematic expertise, forward-leaning solutions, global footprint, and systems for tracking, measuring, and learning with Development Gateway’s innovative use of data, technology, and evidence.
How IREX and DG’s Data Ecosystem Assessment Tools Advance Local Priorities
IREX’s Data Compass and Development Gateway’s CALM are methodologies for assessing data ecosystems. While each methodology produces different outputs based on different needs, both prioritize local collaboration and development to produce insights and outputs that reflect local priorities and actionable recommendations that institutions can own and implement.
Data for Learning: 5 Lessons to Make Evidence-based Education Quality Improvements
Data can be a powerful resource for education reform. Without it, education leaders can be immobilized because they do not have enough information to recognize that problems exist or to make the case for change. However, data only provides value if it is used to inform decisions. Unfortunately, many education systems struggle with this step. So, how can education leaders best be supported to use data to make better decisions in support of quality education improvements? In collaboration with local partners, IREX is supporting the development of data systems and tools to improve education systems through better, evidence-based decision-making.
Thinking of Investing in a Data Ecosystem for Sustainable Development?
Many factors must be considered before investing in a data ecosystem for sustainable development, including the objective of the assessment, the focus level, and specific goals for data outputs. IREX’s Jesus Melendez Vicente and DG’s Carmen Cañas would like to share a few insights and questions to help you get started, including a curated list of tools for data ecosystem assessments.
Announcing: Data-Driven Decision-Making Mapping in Education
Development Gateway: an IREX Venture (DG) and IREX, in partnership with the Hewlett Foundation, are pleased to announce a new research program supporting data-driven decision-making in education in East and West Africa. This two-year, $300,000 project to map education data and decision ecosystems in Kenya and Senegal will focus on the variety of administrative, census, and survey data collected to implement and monitor primary and secondary education. The goal is to holistically understand the barriers to more effective data collection, sharing, interoperability, and use. By understanding the barriers, we can better design support for more robust education data ecosystems that drive better learning outcomes.
Developing Data Systems: Five Issues IREX and DG Explored at Festival de Datos
IREX and Development Gateway: An IREX Venture participated in Festival de Datos from November 7-9, 2023. In this blog, Philip Davidovich, Annie Kilroy, Josh Powell, and Tom Orrell explore five key issues discussed at Festival de Datos on advancing data systems and how IREX and DG are meeting these challenges.