Greetings for the New Year

As a tribute to all our friends and family, the first blog post of the new year features a photo of the participants at the annual knowledge-sharing workshop for AMP, held in Dakar during the first week in December. Without these stakeholders our aid management program would not be as robust. The participants impressed us with their spirit of collaboration and with the knowledge and experiences they shared. The workshop gave us insights into how different countries are addressing issues of aid management. It also gave us some ideas for add-ons to the system. More importantly, it showed us a real example of South-South collaboration. We thank all of the attendees for making the event a success.

The year ended in a rush of activity as the workshop came to an end and then we embarked on a strategic planning process. That process is now under way. We have much to look forward to in 2010. AidData, a user-friendly global repository of development activities, will be launched in March. The aid management program will open its Asian market with an implementation in Laos. And, we will host a follow-on to the Open Development camp. Look here for more details.

The team behind our global IT solutions

An international team of developers supports our diverse offering of technical solutions. These individuals work on AiDA, the aid management program, dgMarket, and Zunia, in addition to projects for clients such as UNDP and AFD. They are based in Armenia, Argentina, Bangladesh, Georgia, Kenya, Romania, Russia, Senegal, Ukraine, and the United States. Eduard Abrahamyan, Hrachya Yeghiazaryan, Vahan Amirbekyan, Tigran Papikyan, Aram Shahinyan, and Anush Martirosyan of the Armenian team are pictured here, captured in a rare moment of relaxation. Using developers around the world results in savings to our clients and solutions that are as adaptable as they are global.

Three things you should know about IATI

The first annual conference for the International Aid Transparency Initiative concluded October 21. Several staff members from Development Gateway attended. From their feedback and the conference presentations, a few themes emerged regarding efforts to make aid data more transparent and accessible. Here are three things you should know:

1. The intent of IATI is not to create a database. The aim is to establish a common set of standards and definitions, and a code of conduct for donors.
2. Aid information management systems at the country level do not replace the Creditor Reporting System of the OECD, rather they are complementary. Read the study that compares data reported to the CRS and aid management systems in Malawi and Burkina Faso. Rudolphe Petras of Development Gateway conducted the study, analyzing information in two implementations of the Aid Management Platform.
3. While the primary emphasis is on donors, civil society organizations also share the responsibility for transparency.

So far 18 signatories are committed to the process. The goal of establishing common information standards by the end of this year will probably not be met. Still, there is much interest as the need for increased transparency is great.

The report from the conference is here and the program with links to presentations is here.

Partners on a quest to make aid data transparent

We're back! And a lot has been happening. Look here for updates on IATI, European Development Days, and events like our photo contest and future barcamps.

This week we announced our partnership with PLAID and our aim to create a comprehensive repository of development data, easily accessible to all. AidData, as the joint venture is called, will have all the content of AiDA and much more. Captured in the photo are two happy people who have been working hard to make this venture a reality, Riccardo De Marchi Trevisan, manager of AiDA, and Jessica Sloan, associate director of the Institute for the Theory and Practice of International Relations at the College of William and Mary.

We see this new portal, a site that will contain all the content from AiDA and much more, as a complement to the OECD Development Assistance Committee Creditor Reporting System. AidData will provide more timely and more detailed qualitative information on aid activities. Access to this data will benefit recipient countries, donors, development practitioners, and researchers. You can read the news release here and more about AidData here.

August Break

We're going to be taking a break from blogging for the rest of August. Enjoy the rest of the month and see you in September.