Advanced Data Planning Tool (ADAPT)
What is ADAPT?
Developed by PARIS21, ADAPT is a free, cloud-based, multilingual and consultative data planning tool for National Statistical Offices (NSOs) and other data producers to adapt their data production to the priority data needs from policymakers. In the case of NSDS – a specific example of a data plan, ADAPT is useful in the stages of its design and deployment.
ADAPT was released in 2016 and updated continuously to include more functionalities relevant to different steps of the NSDS lifecycle. The specifications of ADAPT are designed based on feedback received from country users as a wide range of NSOs are using ADAPT. ADAPT is also being promoted by UNDP and UNSD.
To support the NSDS, the latest version of ADAPT features several modules, particularly: Policies, Logframes, Indicators, Data Sources, and Data Plans.
More information: ADAPT is an on-line cloud-based tool and is currently not available as an offline solution.
How does ADAPT help the NSDS?
In the design stage:
- Detailed data supply and demand analysis
- The figure below presents a stylistic representation of the ADAPT work-flow. The arrows reflect the flow of data demand from policies and data supply from data sources – manifested in the form of required and available indicators. The mismatch between these required and available indicators is reflected in data gaps that ADAPT seeks to address. Further, ADAPT aims to align the linkage between these data gaps and data plans (e.g. NSDS).
- ADAPT produces a wide range of critical reports to show what data demanded is not produced, what is the disaggregation required but currently missing (for instance: sex), etc. ADAPT allows for enhanced data discovery through the documentation and classification of new data sources, by connecting stakeholders other than the NSOs too.
- Additionally, since ADAPT looks at policy and data at the systemic-level, it can easily be used in a cross-cutting manner or applied in the context of a specific policy, sector, administrative unit, etc.
- Identifies capacity or skills gaps
- ADAPT provides a detailed capacity gaps assessment, by indicators. It also provides an overview of skills missing throughout the organisation or NSS, consistent with the GSBPM frameworks.
- Reinvents the user-producer interface
- ADAPT brings together development stakeholders on a collaborative platform for the promotion of policy-responsive data systems. Traditional data user-producer dialogues emphasise on making use of currently available but unused data or refining the quality of data already being used – in general, limited to the NSO data. In ADAPT, this focus is made much more granular and explicit and also extends outside of NSO data. ADAPT goes well beyond the traditional approach by venturing into latent demands.
In the deployment stage:
- Shows progress in implementation
- ADAPT digitalises the NSDS M&E framework and proposes several features to report on progress (e.g. implementation status and indicator values). It also offers different zooming into the actual content of the NSDS, to provide different standardised progress status (e.g. budget status). By showing institutional responsibilities, it can help identify those who are struggling to deliver the agreed plan.
- Maps plans together to enable greater coordination
- ADAPT allows to monitor as many plans as there are in any given data ecosystems (NSDS, SDG Road Map, Health Data Plan, etc. not to mention global plans and sub-national plans). More interestingly, the mapping functionalities of ADAPT allow seeing which activities in which data plan, align with another one, or duplicate them. This is of great relevance to enable greater coordination and improve the cost efficiency of data systems.
- Enhances data planning for mid-term statistical capacity development
- ADAPT helps with adjusting or designing data plans to guide the production of the right data for the immediate and mid-term future. It helps to monitor the implementation of current data plans and contributes to their better alignment by mapping their result-chain frameworks. ADAPT has the potential to reinforce a co-ordinated data infrastructure in a national, regional or global context.
- ADAPT helps with adjusting or designing data plans to guide the production of the right data for the immediate and mid-term future. It helps to monitor the implementation of current data plans and contributes to their better alignment by mapping their result-chain frameworks. ADAPT has the potential to reinforce a co-ordinated data infrastructure in a national, regional or global context.
