DI’s ambition, focus and approach to help deliver a more equitable and resilient world.
DownloadsDecision-makers require real-time, comprehensive, disaggregated information on the needs of people, in order to implement the right policies, financing and mechanisms.
UN Secretary General, António Guterres.
Our mission is to work closely with partners to ensure data-driven evidence and analysis are used effectively in policy and practice to end poverty, reduce inequality and increase resilience.
Our purpose is to apply the power of data and evidence to build sustainable solutions that create an equitable and resilient world.
DI provides:
We partner for impact, contributing to change by:
We support our partners to:
Over the next decade, the decisions we make and the actions we take are going to dictate whether we successfully overcome major global challenges that threaten to reverse progress on poverty, exacerbate inequality and reduce the future resilience of livelihoods, communities, governments and institutions.
A better future is possible, but a huge collaborative effort is required to overcome these challenges. At Development Initiatives, we are committed to playing our part by providing data-driven evidence and analysis to inform and support governments, donors and philanthropic organisations, civil society and NGOs, business and beyond.
Data has the power to unlock insights, shine a light on progress and empower people to increase accountability. Robust, comprehensive and timely data is a key component of success.
The persistence of extreme poverty combined with large inequalities, protracted crises and mounting environmental pressures threaten sustainable social and economic development and undermine peace and stability.
Weakened economic growth will pull millions of people back into poverty and limit the opportunities of many more. Some groups of people continue to be marginalised and left behind based on characteristics such as gender, disability, or age. These groups are often also impacted by intersecting factors, such as socioeconomic disadvantage, discrimination and unequal access to resources. Lack of robust data, alongside various political and social factors, contributes to the challenges that prevent the needs of all communities being acknowledged and addressed.
Sufficient and appropriate financing and investments to end poverty, minimise the impact of crises and strengthen resilience have been a persistent global challenge.
National governments and international organisations are increasingly taking an integrated approach to tackling poverty and a lack of climate resilience, yet responses are fragmented and mobilising new resources remains a challenge.
Currently, investments to support sustainable and cost-effective solutions that help the poorest and most vulnerable people are not enough and are exacerbated by a disconnect between knowledge and practice. Coherence of policy and financing between the development, climate, humanitarian and peace-building communities at all levels continues to be a challenge that holds back progress.
Many global, regional and national systems and structures perpetuate poverty and injustice, increasing different forms of inequality. Those living in fragile or insecure environments – whether because of conflict, weak governance, or environmental degradation – face multiple challenges that are even more complex to resolve. Conversely, the costs of unsustainable progress are also distributed unequally.
Often these costs disproportionately impact the poorest people and places, specific groups (such as women and girls), people with disabilities and other marginalised groups. As a result, millions of people continue to live in poverty and lack access to basic resources (such as nutritious food, clean water and energy).
As we increasingly recognise the interconnectedness of global and national challenges, it is clear that the longer term consequences of entrenched inequality, which perpetuate poverty, are not limited to a marginalised few. Addressing these inequities requires more than better data and greater investment – it requires strong and effective governance systems, accountable governments, strong international norms and standards, as well as transformed and effective multilateral institutions.
Challenging and transforming underlying systems and structures is essential, not only for a more equitable society, but also a more prosperous and stable one.
This decade is already witnessing rapid changes in national and international financing landscapes and the institutions that manage them. These changes are exacerbating existing challenges. However, with the right leadership, ambition and knowledge, change can also be an opportunity to maximise the impact of our collective effort.
A commitment to end poverty, reduce inequality and build resilience must be underpinned by global, regional and national action plans that set out the right policies and programmes; adequate and good quality financing; as well as mechanisms to monitor their implementation and impact.
Decision-makers require real-time, comprehensive, disaggregated information on the needs of people in order to implement the right policies, financing and mechanisms.
This data needs to exist in an accessible and useful format. To be effective, data needs to be ‘analysis-ready’, and analysis needs to be ‘decision-ready’. Data systems in fragile and conflict-affected states are particularly in need of attention, since they are generally weak or non-existent.
With poverty increasingly being concentrated in fragile contexts and countries experiencing significant demographic shifts, understanding the changing needs of people is critical. Fundamentally, strong data ecosystems are vital so that everyone can discover, access and share the data they need.
Increased access to information enhances people’s agency, empowering them within their communities.
New technologies and the increasing digitisation of data offer the promise of new solutions. To fully realise the benefits of technological transformation, data management should be approached holistically. It needs to be supported by the development of processes and practices that deliver robust data governance, ensure data protection and uphold ethical data use. We need to increase expertise and availability of digital resources, training and ‘how-to’ tools for governments, civil society and citizens, so they can produce and use data. In this way we can harness new analytical opportunities and prevent the digital divide widening, to ensure that some groups are not left further behind.
An increase in good quality, coherent financing is essential if we are to deliver on the SDGs and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. All investments, public and private, need to deliver on sustained progress that is not eroded by future crises. We should also look for opportunities to better align financing with knowledge on what works and how it should be directed to meet and deliver on agreed international and domestic public policy commitments.
We all need to put unprecedented effort into working effectively together to maintain a powerful force for change and progress over the next ten years. And at DI, we will be reaching out to our partners and working with them to achieve the ambitions set out in global frameworks at the regional, national and subnational levels.
DI is a trusted partner to all we work with, from governments and international institutions to civil society. We inform their campaigns and policies and ensure they can advocate from a position of strength – underpinned by robust evidence.
Over the next ten years, collaboration will remain at the core of our approach. We will continue to build partnerships, expand our network and increase the support we provide to others, because we know this is the best way to achieve sustainable change.
We will also seek to inspire others to develop a culture where data and evidence are valued, motivate people, and lead to change; and where technology supports greater inclusion, access and voice. Our dedication to the use of data and evidence in decision-making, informed by locally-led and globally connected solutions, makes us perfectly poised to play this role.
We will continue to draw on the expertise and experience we have gained since DI was founded over 25 years ago in order to provide the following for our partners:
These activities will enable our partners to:
We will partner for change to help:
Underpinning these drivers of change is DI’s passion, expertise and belief in the power of comprehensive and timely data, and data systems. When used well, data makes hidden challenges visible, increases transparency of financial flows, reveals patterns and trends of who is and is not benefiting, and helps inform better decisions to build equitable and inclusive systems and solutions.
Our three drivers of change are connected by DI’s focus on collaboration and partnering for impact.
We know that one organisation alone cannot create the change we aspire to. Only by working together and understanding how we support each other can we reach our shared goals.
Our contribution forms part of a wider chain of impact – a broader ecosystem of actors aiming to build a more equitable and resilient world. Our focus on data and evidence unlocks insight, shines a light on progress and empowers people to increase accountability. Alone it does not and cannot achieve our vision of a better future, but it is a necessary part of getting us there.
We will work with others to inform policy and practice, change mindsets and influence debate at the global, regional and national level to bring about the changes we want to see.
We will support our partners to:
“DI’s data on poverty offers an opportunity to make informed decisions especially when we make strategic plans to increase the incomes of small scale farmers.”
Mount Elgon Coffee and Honey Co-Operative, Uganda.
“A big general thank you to you all at Development Initiatives for everything you do. It makes such a difference for the humanitarian sector to have high quality and regular data.”
Hugo Slim, Senior Research Fellow at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, UK.
They have been developed by staff to embody how we work with each other and our partners.
Over the next ten years, we will strengthen our capabilities to deliver on our goals. DI will develop and change as an institution to ensure we are effective, innovative and responsive to need.
Our new operating model will be supported by a network of Hubs around the world. This will enable us to be closer to the organisations and people who we want to collaborate with at all levels, from global institutions to regional, national and subnational organisations. We will work with our partners to strengthen data ecosystems in these locations, and ensure our evidence and analysis is tailored to the needs of our partners.
Each of our Hubs will be anchored in a regional capital. They will coordinate work with and through partners and consultants in countries within the region. These Hubs will primarily operate in countries with stable governments committed to a transformative agenda aligned with DI’s values. We always seek to work in locations where there is an open and effective civil society and a commitment to data and evidence.
DI’s work will focus on fragile and crisis contexts as poverty shifts into these contexts and building resilience becomes a priority. Case studies from fragile contexts will inform our analysis. Although consultants and staff may travel to fragile contexts for specific assignments, we will not set up operations at a national level in states which are fragile, conflict-affected, insecure and difficult to operate in.
Resourcing our ambition: From 2021 to 2030, we expect DI to expand as an organisation through our network of Hubs. We will continue to engage our major donors as partners with whom we co-create and co-execute strategies, while also mobilising new funding for our regional work. We will strengthen our ability to secure and manage large multi-year grants and contracts. We will continue to provide a mixture of services to our partners – including governments, international non-governmental organisations, civil society organisations (CSOs), social impact investors an corporate partners – supported by grant income and through contracts.
