Global Working Group on Big Data for Official Statistics
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| Global Working Group on Big Data for Official Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Name | Global Working Group on Big Data for Official Statistics |
| Formation | 2014 |
| Purpose | Coordination of big data use for official statistics |
| Headquarters | United Nations Statistical Division |
| Region served | Worldwide |
| Parent organization | United Nations Statistical Commission |
Global Working Group on Big Data for Official Statistics The Global Working Group on Big Data for Official Statistics was established to coordinate international efforts in leveraging large-scale digital data for statistical production, policy analysis, and monitoring of global indicators. It brings together national statistical offices, multilateral institutions, academic centres, and private sector actors to advance methods, standards, and pilot studies that align with international statistical systems and development agendas. The group acts as a platform for knowledge exchange between institutions engaged in data science, geospatial analysis, and survey methodology.
Background and Mandate
The mandate of the Working Group was shaped through deliberations at the United Nations Statistical Commission, following inputs from the United Nations General Assembly, the United Nations Economic and Social Council, and policy guidance from the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. It was formed amid rising interest from actors such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and regional bodies like the African Union and the European Commission. The Group’s remit spans alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals, interoperability with the Global Working Group on Big Data (other initiatives), and adherence to standards referenced by the International Organization for Standardization and the International Telecommunication Union.
Organizational Structure and Membership
The Working Group operates under the auspices of the United Nations Statistical Division and reports to the United Nations Statistical Commission through periodic updates alongside inputs from agencies including the United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme, World Health Organization, and the Food and Agriculture Organization. Membership comprises representatives from national statistical offices such as the U.S. Census Bureau, Office for National Statistics (United Kingdom), Statistics Canada, Australian Bureau of Statistics, and statistical authorities from countries across Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Oceania. Observers and partners include technology companies like Google, Facebook, Amazon, and research institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Oxford, Harvard University, and the London School of Economics. Steering committees and task teams have included experts affiliated with the Inter-American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, European Central Bank, and civil society organizations like Open Data Institute.
Activities and Workstreams
Core activities include thematic workstreams on data access, privacy, geospatial integration, and capacity building, often coordinated with thematic pillars led by the United Nations Secretary-General's initiatives. Pilot projects have involved collaborations with the World Bank's Poverty and Equity Global Practice, experimentation using passively collected data from telecommunication companies and satellite imagery providers, and case studies with central banks such as the Bank of England. The Group convenes workshops and technical seminars at venues including the United Nations Headquarters, International Statistical Institute conferences, and regional forums hosted by organizations like the African Development Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Methodologies and Technical Guidance
The Working Group develops guidance on methodological issues including data validation, statistical inference, bias adjustment, and interoperability, referencing technical frameworks used by the International Monetary Fund and protocols promulgated by the International Telecommunication Union. Methodological outputs draw on techniques from machine learning groups at Google DeepMind, geospatial methods used by European Space Agency, and survey integration approaches practised by the United Nations Population Fund and the Demographic and Health Surveys Program. Guidance addresses legal and ethical considerations articulated in instruments like standards from the International Organization for Standardization and principles promoted by the World Health Organization and the Council of Europe on privacy and data protection.
Partnerships and Collaborations
Strategic partnerships span multilateral agencies, national authorities, academia, and private sector firms: collaborations with the World Bank support capacity building in low- and middle-income countries, while joint work with the OECD and the European Commission advances statistical standards. Research collaborations involve universities such as Stanford University, University of Cambridge, University of California, Berkeley, and regional research hubs like the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. Industry engagement has included memoranda of understanding with technology firms and data providers, and liaison with international fora such as the Internet Governance Forum and the G20 data working groups.
Impact, Publications, and Case Studies
The Working Group has produced technical notes, best-practice guides, and case studies disseminated at forums like the International Statistical Institute and the United Nations World Data Forum. Notable case studies examined satellite-derived indicators used by the European Space Agency and NASA to estimate agricultural productivity, mobile network data employed in disaster response coordinated with United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and novel price indices integrating web-scraped data used by central banks including the European Central Bank and Reserve Bank of India. Publications have influenced national strategies adopted by agencies such as Statistics South Africa and Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (Argentina), and contributed to capacity programmes funded by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.