August 2008 · Number 133 46981 A regular series of notes highlighting recent lessons emerging from the operational and analytical program of the World Bank`s Latin America and Caribbean Region. Improving Policy-making and Development Effectiveness through Statistics The Regional Award for Innovation in Statistics José Molinas Vega, Indu John-Abraham and Jonna Lundvall Efforts to design effective development policies aimed statistical development is often under-valued, both in at enhancing the welfare of people in the Latin America terms of political priorities and financial investments. and Caribbean (LAC) region depend on the improved measurement of living conditions, strengthened The work of TSD has contributed significantly to moving information baselines in monitoring and evaluation the statistical agenda forward, notably through the increased systems and the availability of high quality statistical inclusion of actors engaged in the production and use of information. The World Bank's Team for Statistical statistical information at the national and international Development (TSD)1in the Latin America and Caribbean levels. The activities build upon the partnership established (LAC) Region is working to increase the capacity of users with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and and producers of statistics to support improved evidence- UN-ECLAC through the based policies through the use of high-quality statistics in MECOVI program. This their design, implementation and evaluation. TSD supports supported the generation activities that emphasize innovative solutions and best of quality information statistical practices in the region. through improved household surveys As part of this approach, and with the financial support carried out by the of the British Department for International Development National Statistical Offices. Recently, TSD has expanded (DFID), a Regional Award for Innovation in Statistics was the reach of statistical capacity building to include planning launched in July 2007. The Award aimed to recognize and finance ministries, central banks, line ministries, sub- the importance of statistics in development and promote national governments, the private sector, academia, as well innovation in this area and was the first of its kind, not as the collaboration with PARIS21, OECD, European and only in the LAC Region, but worldwide. American national statistical offices around the National Strategies for the Development of Statistics (NSDS). The Statistics to Improve Policy-making NSDS requires moving beyond household surveys to The level of statistical development in LAC varies also support improvement of censuses and administrative considerably between countries, but in general there records. This work also required a stock-taking of is an increased awareness of the need for the adequate innovative statistical practices in the LAC region. production and use of high quality statistical information. The growing monitoring and evaluation (M&E) agenda A Unique Award is Launched within the LAC region has undoubtedly contributed. Yet With financial support from DFID, the Team for Statistical Development launched the Regional Award for Innovation 1 TSD is part of the Poverty and Gender Unit in the Latin Ameerica and Ca- ribbean Region (LCR). in Statistics in June 2007. . The work described in this note was supported by the UK Government's Department of International Development (DFID) through the Markets and Governance for Poverty Reduction Fund (MGPR) Trust Fund. The views expressed in this document are not necessarily those of the UK Department for International Development' The competition was enthusiastically welcomed in the THE EVALUATION PROCESS region, and resulted in more than 150 applications from For the initial application, the statistical programs were 20 countries. For a statistical program to be considered asked to describe the innovation achieved, the quality for the Award, it had to be of high overall quality as well of the data and make explicit reference to how the as clearly innovative in at least one particular process innovation and quality of the data contribute to its utility related to data production, use and/or institutional aspects. and use. All applications received were evaluated by a Statistical programs in the three categories of censuses, group of experts from the Inter-American Development surveys and administrative records, implemented between Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the January 1996 and December 2006 by statistics-producing World Bank. Based on the points system established, entities from World Bank member countries in the Latin approximately 20 percent of programs moved on to the America and Caribbean region were eligible to submit second round, and the institutions responsible for these application(s). activities were requested to prepare a more extensive technical brief. The countries that presented the largest number of applications were Colombia, Argentina and The Concept of Innovation The 36 selected semi-finalists representing 13 countries exemplified Peru, followed by Panama, Innovation implies the application of new ideas the thematic diversity found in the Honduras and Uruguay. National to improve a service, product or process. In- region, focusing on social, economic, Statistical Offices presented novation involves change, but not all changes and infrastructure statistics. In the a large percentage of the involve new ideas or significant improvements. Census category, eight statistical applications (31%), but other programs were pre-selected, participating institutions included In the framework of the Regional Award for representing South America, Central sub-national governmental offices Innovation in Statistics, innovation is linked to America and the Caribbean. The (19%), line ministries (15%), new or improved processes of design, data category that received the highest NGOs (12%), universities (10%), collection, analysis and dissemination of data; number of applications was the central banks (7%), and the private the introduction of new technology; modified Surveys category, where 18 programs sector (5%). or new management structures and systems; moved on to the next round, and the strategic direction of the statistical representing national statistical Of the applications received, program: in other words, all the elements that offices, ministries, NGOs and 17% fell under the category lead to improvements in the quality of statisti- universities. Finally, in the category of Censuses; 50% were in the cal information and its use for the design and for Administrative Records, 10 category of Surveys; and, 33% implementation of better public policies. statistical activities were selected to in Administrative Records. The remain in the contest. applications also demonstrated a high level of thematic diversity, with the majority of The information required for the technical brief of the the proposals focusing on social statistics (52%) and semi-finalists allowed for the use of internationally economic statistics (27%). recognized methods and standards to assess the programs, and focussed on three dimensions: The Award has not only generated a significant level of interest and active involvement of statistical · Data Quality: Integrity, methodological soundness, producers in the region, but has also highlighted accuracy and reliability, innovative aspects of data the creativity of producers to develop and apply production. new ideas to better address the particular realities · Data Use and Utility: Relevance, serviceability, of their local contexts. It has further served as a accessibility, innovative usage for policy and project unique opportunity to underscore the importance of design, monitoring and evaluation. statistical development as a foundation for evidence- · Institutional Capacity: Legal and institutional envi- based policymaking for poverty reduction and ronment, resources, quality of management, innova- equalizing opportunities. tion for cost-effectiveness. 2 · August 2008 · Number 133 The Expert Technical Evaluation Committee that evaluated education, improving the evaluation of institutions and the technical briefs to select the most innovative programs promoting the excellence of higher education in Brazil. represented the Inter American Development Bank, the Box 1 provides a short description of each one of the International Monetary Fund, the Pan American Health awarded programs. Organization, EUROSTAT, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Spanish National Statistical Office, and the World Bank. The jury also awarded honorable mention to seven programs that showed an outstanding level of innovation. The Winners The winners and finalists will have the opportunity to On Thursday April 10, 2008, the World Bank announced further disseminate their experiences at the regional and the winners of the first Regional Award for Innovation international levels to promote the exchange of innovative in Statistics (see Box 1) in an Award Ceremony with solutions and South-South learning. As Marcelo Giugale, more than 100 people in attendance, including statistical Director of the Bank's Poverty Reduction and Economic producers representing the 31 finalist statistical programs Management (PREM) Department in LAC, said at the and representatives of diplomatic delegations, evaluating Award Ceremony: "Given the high quality and large organizations (IDB, IMF, U.S. Census Bureau, PARIS21, volume of applications received, the World Bank is setting etc.) and press. up a permanent platform that will allow us to further disseminate and cross-fertilize these programs not only "This competition has accentuated the inventive ways in within Latin America, but worldwide." which Latin American countries are pursuing new ideas to better meet the pressing demands for timely, accurate and Widespread Support and Recognition for the Award accessible information," said Pamela Cox, World Bank The launch and promotion of the Award has served as Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean during a means to attract attention to a subject generally seen the Ceremony. as dull and generated a high level of interest among numerous stakeholders in the region. The interest First prize was awarded to the Mexican Family Life shown by statistical producers created notable support Survey, produced by the Iberoamerican University and and collaboration within the international community, the Center for Economic Research and Teaching (CIDE), including substantial financial support for the Award in association with other institutions in Mexico. This from DFID and the Accelerated Data Program (ADP) of multi-purpose survey allows for PARIS21. International and bilateral longitudinal nationwide research on organizations, as well as European many social issues and also includes and American statistical offices have information on Mexican migrants to offered their technical expertise to the the United States. process and stimulated greater interest, legitimacy and collaboration to the The second place award went to Award. Furthermore, other regions and the Consumer Price Index (CPI) units in the Bank already have expressed produced by the Colombian their interest in replicating the award to National Administrative Department promote statistical development. for Statistics (DANE) for its incorporation of features that have In an interesting twist, the Regional improved its use and reliability, Award for Innovation in Statistics was such as an innovative management recognized with a prize at the LAC quality certification system used Graciela Teruel from Universidad Iberoamericana receives the Innovation Fair. The award, which is in the production of the index. The Award from Pamela Cox, World Bank Regional Vice President voted on by the staff from the region and Brazilian Ministry of Education won across the Bank who attended the fair, third place for its innovative system that has facilitated the was singled out for its creative approach to highlighting the dissemination, evaluation and statistical analysis of higher value of this often unacknowledged subject. More information on the Regional Award for Innovation in Statistics, including a full list of and additional information on each one of the award-winning pro- grams can be found on the website: www.worldbank.org/lacstatistics and www.bancomundial.org/lacestadisticas August 2008 · Number 133 · 3 Box 1 - Awarded Programs PROGRAM INSTITUTION COUNTRY DESCRIPTION FIRST PLACE Mexican Family Universidad Mexico This survey, conducted at the national, regional and urban-rural levels, com- Life Survey Iberoamericana, piles information about the well-being of Mexicans. It includes detailed data Center for Eco- on income, savings and consumption patterns, nutrition and health. Two of nomic Research the most innovative aspects of the survey are the inclusion of information on and Teaching Mexican migrants to the United States, which constitutes an enormous leap (CIDE) and asso- forward in the gathering of information on migration and its effect on the rest ciated institutions of the household; and the multi-purpose nature of the survey, which has al- lowed for longitudinal nationwide research on many social issues, such as mental health, violence and crime. SECOND PLACE Consumer Price National Admin- Colombia The CPI is a long-standing and highly utilized source of information in the Index (CPI) istrative Depart- country, incorporating various inventive features that have increased its use ment for Statis- and reliability. An innovative and comprehensive management quality certi- tics (DANE) fication system has been incorporated into the production of the index based on the review of international norms by independent experts. The consump- tion basket is calculated using both flexible and fixed variables. The use of mobile devices for the collection of data has further facilitated the compilation and dissemination of information. THIRD PLACE Bank of Evalua- National Institute Brazil This program has made it easier to evaluate the quality of higher education in tors of the Na- of Studies and Brazil by integrating the collection and updating of data on professors, evalu- tional System of Research (INEP), ators and courses, and linking it to other relevant agencies. The system has Higher Education Ministry of Edu- facilitated the dissemination, evaluation and statistical analysis of higher edu- (BASIs) cation cation, improving the evaluation of institutions and promoting the excellence of higher education in Brazil HONORABLE MENTIONS Country Program Institution Argentina Employment and Business Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Social Security Dynamics Observatory Brazil Integrated Educational Infor- National Institute of Studies and Research (INEP), Ministry of Education mation System (SIEd) Mexico Labor Statistics Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) Peru Demographic and Health Sur- National Statistical Office (INEI) vey -Continuous DHS Peru Children of the Millennium/ Group for the Analysis of Development (GRADE) Young Lives Trinidad and To- Geographic Data Management Central Statistical Office bago System (GDMS) Uruguay Primary Education Monitor National Administration of Public Education (ANEP) About the Authors José Molinas Vega is a Senior Economist, Indu John-Abraham and Jonna Lundvall are Consultants, all working with the Poverty Group of "en breve" is produced by the Knowledge and Learning Team of the Operations Services Department of the Latin America and the Caribbean Region of the World Bank - http://www.worldbank.org/lac · August 2008 · Number 133