Introduction

The UN Secretary-General’s Independent Expert Advisory Group published its flagship report, A World That Counts: Mobilizing the Data Revolution For Sustainable Development (WTC) in 2014, helping to launch a myriad of initiatives and entities to support countries in mobilizing new technologies and data to accelerate sustainable development. The report propounded a number of assumptions, including that technology would change government for the better (i.e. lead to more efficient service delivery and better policies through better data), and that data would empower individuals to increase their civic participation and hold institutions accountable.

about the project

Nine years after the report’s publication and nearly half of the way through the SDG timeline, TReNDS Secretariat in consultation with its members and key stakeholders are reflecting on these assumptions. We aim to produce a series of outputs that identify lessons learned to further the “data for development” agenda and to address where shifts in our thinking are needed.

For more information on this workstream, please email castelline.tilus@unsdsn.org.