Officials from government and multilateral institutions have called for increased data utilisation in policymaking, emphasising the importance of harnessing data-driven insights to inform effective decision-making across various sectors.

They made the call on Wednesday, September 25, during the opening ceremony of the second edition of the Innovate Africa Symposium, running until September 27 in Kigali.

"Without proper data governance, we are going to have a lot of breaches that could make policymaking really very difficult and undermine trust in government systems,” said Samson Babatunde Omotosho, Director of Statistics at the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Omotosho highlighted that it was essential to foster a strong partnership between data producers and users.

"Significant investment in data collection and analysis is meaningless if it does not inform policymaking, as it will not create tangible impacts on people's lives,” he said, adding that bringing together all stakeholders to discuss data production, governance, and its effective use is crucial for driving meaningful development.

The symposium, running under the theme ‘Strengthening Data Governance in the African Data Ecosystem,’ aims to highlight the critical role of data governance in Africa's digital era, bringing together leaders from government, civil society, academia, and the private sector.

Linda Mutesi Rusagara, State Minister in charge of Resource Mobilisation and Public Investment at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN), said that to unlock the continent’s full potential, data must be at the heart of decision-making, policy development, and service delivery.

Rusagara emphasised Rwanda’s commitment to becoming a truly data-driven country, highlighting the government's ongoing investments in infrastructure to support robust data collection, storage, and analysis, as well as efforts to develop a skilled workforce.

"Rwanda hosts three world-class academic programs (the University of Rwanda’s African Centre of Excellence in Data Science, Carnegie Mellon University Africa, and the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences) which are training the next generation of African data scientists, ensuring that we not only collect data but also know how to analyse and use it effectively,”she said.

The three-day symposium is focusing on the essential role of data in shaping policy, improving service delivery, and driving economic growth across Africa.

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Challenges

According to Ivan Murenzi, Director General of the National Institute of Stastics of Rwanda (NISR), to fully embrace data governance requires to address existing challenges in data collection methods and processes.

"The focus is on accessing data beyond traditional surveys and censuses, including data from the private sector, government, and various systems. Ensuring this data is properly managed, follows data privacy protocols, and remains meaningful to decision-makers while protecting the trust of data providers,” he explained.

"Experts from around the world are sharing their experiences, tools, and ideas on how to achieve this in statistics offices, central banks, and other government institutions,” he said.

Murenzi emphasised the need to integrate non-traditional data sources, including those from the private sector and government systems, into data collection processes.

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"Traditional data collection through surveys is costly and done periodically, sometimes every three or five years, the survey only goes by a selected sample of people that then generalize the entire population,” he noted.

However, Murenzi observed that there is a wealth of real-time data from sectors like health, transportation, and education that can complement these surveys and be used for immediate decision-making at the national and operational levels.

At the symposium, experts are covering themes, such as Innovation and Strategy, Platforms and Process, and Technology Demos, all aimed at boosting transparency, efficiency, and innovation in African governance systems, according to officials.

Babatunde said that the landscape of data is evolving, with emerging data sets like big data, device-generated information, and automated data that is not collected directly by humans.

"It is crucial to focus on these new data types alongside the traditional sets already utilised by governments. As we adapt to these changes, they must be integrated into our planning and execution processes,” he said.

What is expected as the key takeaway from this three-day meeting , he added, is that stakeholders will recognise the importance of data governance.

"This recognition will pave the way for cross-border data flow across African countries, ensuring that the necessary data is generated, protected, and used effectively,” Babatunde said.