Good data is crucial to good decision-making – and a new central source of reliable, current Pacific data will help governments, agencies, donors and civil society alike when making decisions that affect Pacific peoples.
The Pacific Data Hub (PDH) was launched on 1 December 2020.
PDH provides authoritative data on a wide range of topics, from education, fisheries, and geoscience to energy, the environment and economic development. A selection of visualisation tools makes the data easy to access.
The Ministry partnered with SPC to develop the new digital hub. SPC is the lead regional agency on statistics and has been a custodian of Pacific data for decades.
SPC began working on the concept of a Pacific data hub in 2018. In 2019, Aotearoa New Zealand agreed to provide $6.5 million over four years to support the collation and analysis of Pacific development statistics, and to build the hub as a platform for dissemination.
PDH’s data-sharing capacity will help Pacific countries to collaborate better, and ensure development partners are supporting the Pacific’s most important needs.
The access PDH offers to the latest Pacific development statistics, including progress towards the UN SDGs, will also help to shape and prioritise the Ministry’s work with Pacific countries.
The hub is set up in a way that enables any government, donor, academic, or community member to store and control their own data, with all users able to view and access the entire range of data held.
The PIF Secretariat, SPREP, and Australia have all acknowledged the value of the hub, and supported the important work SPC is doing. As Pacific governments and development partners make complex decisions to respond to the impacts of COVID-19, up-to-date and accurate data is more important than ever.
The Ministry will continue to encourage other development partners to consider supporting the PDH. As part of a wider portfolio of Ministry support for Pacific-led initiatives to improve evidence-informed decision-making, the hub is an important catalyst for better outcomes for Pacific communities.
View the Pacific Data Hub at https://pacificdata.org(external link).