During his speech at the “World Bank Partnership Roundtable” in Washington, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, Ghana’s Minister for Finance expressed that, accessibility of top notch and timely data is a significant empowering agent for Developing countries to jump. He then called on governments and development partners to scale up investment in data for accelerated development.
“I will like to use this occasion, to call on policy makers to prioritise investments in data systems as that is the way to go if we have to fast-track our development ambitions,” he said.
The Minister added that, it was similarly essential to lay out vigorous data governance frameworks to guarantee quality and security, elevate open data arrangements to improve transparency and accountability.
Dr Amin was speaking at a World Bank Partnership Roundtable: “The Power of Data – Unlocking the Data Dividend” at the margins of the 2024 IMF-WB Spring Meetings in Washington DC.
The programme brought together policy makers, development partners, and practitioners to discuss and promote the development and use of data.
“Quality and timely data were “key raw material” for development, essential for addressing developmental challenges such as climate change, emergency response, poverty, inequality, health care, education, descent jobs, debt sustainability, macroeconomic stabilisation, growth, and good governance”, he said.
Dr Amin Adam further underlined the profit from interest in data saying that new exploration showed a typical return of $32 for each dollar invested into data systems and called on the private sector and development partners to scale up their support for data systems.
“As we forge ahead, it is critical that we remain committed to leveraging the power of data to address pressing challenges, drive innovation, and create a better future for all. Together, with a clear vision and a strong commitment to data-driven policymaking, we can chart a path towards prosperity and resilience for generations to come,” he emphasised.
The Minister also gave an overview of what government has been doing to strengthen Ghana’s national statistical systems.
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These include the National Data Roadmap to improve tracking of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was developed in 2017; passage of the Statistical Service Act (ACT1009) in 2019, operationalisation of the National Statistics Advisory Committee and the Harmonising and Improving Statistics in West Africa, in addition to a number of others supported by development partners such as the Power of Dation High Impact Initiative.
“The strides made by the Ghanaian government, in collaboration with development partners and international organizations, underscore a collective commitment to harnessing the power of data for the betterment of society.”
As a result, Dr. Amin Adam urged increased investment and collaboration to harness the power of data and close the significant gap in timely generation of high-quality data to support development efforts at the national and global levels.
