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Improving the quality of administrative data used for Official Statistics – Recent experiences in the

Emirate of Abu Dhabi

October 2014

Nancy McBeth and Khaled Al Hashmi IAOS 2014, Da Nang Vietnam

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Contents

1. Introduction to Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates

2. Statistical System of Abu Dhabi (SSAD)

3. Pilot Data Quality Assessment Process

4. Key Findings

5. Implications for SSAD Strategy

6. Lessons and Recommendations

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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.

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2. Statistical System of Abu Dhabi

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SSAD Vision Leading statistical system providing relevant,

accurate statistics to meet the needs of users and inform Abu Dhabi’s development agenda

Strategic Objectives

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

Producers Products Users Management Governance

Capability Quality Service Coordination Oversight

SSAD Strategic Initiatives

Future Strategy of Statistical System of Abu Dhabi

• sustainable statistical system• use of official statistics in decision making

• profile of Abu Dhabi globally • world class systems

Priorities

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Future Strategy of Statistical System of Abu Dhabi

• 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

SSAD Strategy SSAD Quality Initiatives

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Quality Assessment framework

Pilot project – 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

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3. Pilot Data Quality Assessment Process

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Based on DESAP – and adjusted for local conditions

Relevance

Accuracy

Timeliness & Punctuality

Accessibility & Clarity

Comparability

Coherence

Pilot Data Quality Framework – Quality Components

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4. Key Findings

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Components of Quality

Relevance

Accuracy

Timeliness & Punctuality

Accessibility & Clarity

Comparability

Coherence

Key Findings

Nearly all relevant. More work needed to understand user satisfaction

25% of datasets frequently delivered late. Nearly 20% of datasets significant lag. SCAD Outputs are generally delivered to deadlines

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

Generally internally coherent

25% of datasets with significant under coverage. Errors in approximately 50%

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Key Results – Overall Quality

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Scale: 1 Poor 5 Very Good

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Example of High Quality

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Scale: 1 Poor 5 Very Good

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Example of Poorer Quality

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Scale: 1 Poor 5 Very Good

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Quality Issues within Entities

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Component Issue Possible Causes within Entities

Accuracy Significant under-coverage

• Limited IT functionality• Outsource contracts with no or

limited quality checks

Timeliness and Punctuality

Significant lags Data delivery delays

• Limited IT functionality• Time needed for data review• Data supply timeframes not aligned

with SCAD

Metadata Supply Poor metadata supply • Struggle to source metadata from their providers

• Metadata needs to be enhanced to meet statistical requirements

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• 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)

Actions to improve the Quality of Administrative Data

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5. Implications for SSAD Strategy

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

Producers Products Users Management Governance

Capability Quality Service Coordination Oversight

SSAD Strategic Initiatives

SSAD Vision Leading statistical system providing relevant,

accurate statistics to meet the needs of users and inform Abu Dhabi’s development agenda

• sustainable statistical system• use of official statistics in decision making

• profile of Abu Dhabi globally • world class systems

Priorities

Strategic Objectives

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6. Lessons and 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

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Lessons Recommendations

• 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

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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

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