October 2014

1. Improving the quality of administrative data used for Official Statistics – Recent experiences in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi Nancy McBeth and Khaled Al Hashmi IAOS 2014, Da Nang Vietnam October 2014

2. Contents • Introduction to Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates • Statistical System of Abu Dhabi (SSAD) • Pilot Data Quality Assessment Process • Key Findings • Implications for SSAD Strategy • Lessons and Recommendations

3. 1. Introduction to Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates • Abu Dhabi – largest of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE) • UAE - established in 1971, major producer of oil and gas; major transport hub and tourism destination • Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi - SCAD has four main functions: • Develop and organize a statistical system for Abu Dhabi. • Contribute to the UAE’s national statistical system. • Provide official statistics related to the conditions of the Abu Dhabi society. • Support decision makers in Abu Dhabi.

4. 2. Statistical System of Abu Dhabi

5. Future Strategy of Statistical System of Abu Dhabi • SSAD Vision Leading statistical system providing relevant, accurate statistics to meet the needs • of users and inform Abu Dhabi’s development agenda Priorities • sustainable statistical system • use of official statistics in decision making • profile of Abu Dhabi globally • world class systems Strategic Objectives Producers Users Governance Products Management 1. Build the statistical capability of entities in the SSAD 2. Elevate the quality of data and statistical products 3. Improve user orientation of the SSAD 4. Drive continuous improvement through management and coordination of the SSAD 5. Ensure adequate oversight, representation and governance of statistical activity Service Coordination Capability Quality Oversight SSAD Strategic Initiatives

6. Future Strategy of Statistical System of Abu Dhabi SSAD Strategy SSAD Quality Initiatives • SSAD Standards and Guidelines Handbook • Quality Assurance & Audit for SCAD + ADGE, QA Function • ADGE Statistical Accreditation • Certification process for surveys and statistics production • Define Scope and Revise SLAs between SCAD and ADGE

7. 3. Pilot Data Quality Assessment Process Quality Assessment framework Pilotproject – 43 datasets provided by 23 Abu Dhabi Government and Federal entities Two stage assessment:a) Internal SCAD assessment b) Final assessment prepared after discussions with sub-set of entities Action Plans developed between SCAD and sub-set of Entities 1 2 3 4

8. Pilot Data Quality Framework – Quality Components Relevance Accuracy Timeliness & Punctuality Accessibility & Clarity Comparability Coherence Based on DESAP – and adjusted for local conditions

9. 4. Key Findings Components of Quality Key Findings Nearly all relevant. More work needed to understand user satisfaction • Relevance 25% of datasets with significant under coverage. Errors in approximately 50% • Accuracy 25% of datasets frequently delivered late. Nearly 20% of datasets significant lag. SCAD Outputs are generally delivered to deadlines Timeliness & Punctuality • Accessibility & Clarity 75% of datasets - limited or no metadata supplied, resulting in poor metadata provided to Users. Nearly all datasets are eventually released as statistics Comparable over time – but more work needed to compare and contrast data with other datasets Comparability Coherence Generally internally coherent .

10. Key Results – Overall Quality Scale: 1 Poor 5 Very Good

11. Example of High Quality Scale: 1 Poor 5 Very Good

12. Example of Poorer Quality Scale: 1 Poor 5 Very Good

13. Quality Issues within Entities

14. Actions to improve the Quality of Administrative Data • Metadata frameworks • Quality Manual and Guidelines • Timeliness and Accuracy Improvement Projects in entities • Review and strengthen Service Level Agreements (SLAs) • Develop and implement the Statistical System of Abu Dhabi (SSAD)

15. 5. Implications for SSAD Strategy • SSAD Vision Leading statistical system providing relevant, accurate statistics to meet the needs • of users and inform Abu Dhabi’s development agenda Priorities • sustainable statistical system • use of official statistics in decision making • profile of Abu Dhabi globally • world class systems Strategic Objectives Producers Users Governance Products Management 2. Elevate the quality of data and statistical products 1. Build the statistical capability of entities in the SSAD 3. Improve user orientation of the SSAD 4. Drive continuous improvement through management and coordination of the SSAD 5. Ensure adequate oversight, representation and governance of statistical activity Quality Service Coordination Capability Oversight SSAD Strategic Initiatives

16. 6. Lessons and Recommendations Lessons Recommendations • DESAP model can be adapted • Data quality is a joint responsibility between the providing entity and the Statistics Office • Quality assessment - combination of in-house resources and data providers • Pilot, reflect, revise • Manage data quality improvements in the context of the wider system • Base Quality Assessment frameworks and tools on International practices, but adapt to local conditions • Develop and implement Data Quality Assessments - Don’t be afraid to start • Improving Data Quality, one of the many activities to enhancing relationships with data providers

17. Thank You • Questions? • For More information Read our paper Talk to us Khaled Al Hashmi - kalhashmi@scad.ae Nancy McBeth - nemcbeth@scad.ae Visit our website www.scad.ae