WORLD BANK GROUP GENDER THEMATIC POLICY NOTES SERIES: ISSUES AND PRACTICE NOTE LEVERAGING GENDER DATA TO ACCELERATE GENDER EQUALITY ANNA TABITHA BONFERT, SARAH BUNKER, CAROL MARINA TOJEIRO, SHOGHIK HOVHANNISYAN OVERVIEW Gender data are a critical input to achieving gender equality goals. Yet insufficient availability of and funding for gender data impede effective policy making. Without high-quality gender data, it is impossible to understand gender differences in living conditions, opportunities, productivity, and other elements germane to development. Gender data are also critical to monitoring progress in empowering women and closing gender gaps. This policy note outlines the evolution, challenges, and priorities related to gender data that can inform not only World Bank Group operations but also highlight opportunities for engagement with external stakeholders. It summarizes the World Bank Group’s programmatic experience in improving the availability, quality, processing, dissemination, and use of gender data; and offers recommendations along five key levers: 1. Financing – to enhance gender data collection in new and existing thematic areas via traditional and nontraditional methods 2. Research – to develop improved methods and international standards for gender data production 3. Capacity Building – to empower data producers in the public and private sectors to follow best practices in data production, processing, and dissemination 4. Data for operational design and policy making – to enable policymakers, managers, administrators, academics, civil society organizations, businesses, and others to make informed recommendations and decisions based on gender data 5. Partnerships – to fill specific data gaps, innovate on data production methods, and advocate for data use JULY 2023 TABLE OF CONTENTS BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE FOR GENDER DATA 1 Evolution of Gender Data and World Bank Group Contributions 4 Thematic Gaps in Gender Data 8 Challenges and Development Community Priorities 12 OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE 15 Investing in Data Collection to Improve Data Availability 15 Investing in Methodological Research to Improve Data Quality 18 Investing in Technical Capacity Building and Guidance to Improve Data Processing 18 Investing in Data Curation and Dissemination to Ensure Access 20 Promoting Gender Data for Analysis, Uptake, And Use 21 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR WORLD BANK GROUP OPERATIONAL AND ANALYTICAL WORK 23 RESOURCES 23 REFERENCES 27 APPENDIX A: GENDER DATA IN IDA POLICY COMMITMENTS AND IFC CAPITAL INCREASE COMMITMENTS 29 This note is part of a series that provides an analytical foundation for the new World Bank Group Gender Strategy (2024-2030). The series seeks to give a broad overview of the latest research and findings on gender equality outcomes and summarizes key thematic issues, evidence on promising solutions, operational good practices, and key areas for future engagement on promoting gender equality and empowerment. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work are entirely those of the author(s). They do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank Group or its Board of Directors. This note focuses on gender data for development impact and international reporting at the national and market levels rather than the collection of internal data for monitoring operational work. This note is a product of collaboration between the World Bank Gender Group and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). It was prepared by Anna Tabitha Bonfert and Sarah Bunker from the World Bank in close collaboration with Carol Marina Tojeiro and Shoghik Hovhannisyan from IFC. Kathleen Beegle, Maria Eugenia Genoni, Talip Kilic, and Priyanka Tayal Kolasa served as peer reviewers and provided valuable guidance and suggestions. Additional support and helpful inputs were provided by Heather Moylan, Miriam Muller, Abhilasha Sahay, Tanima Ahmed, Clifton Cortez, Trishna Rana, Diego Ubfal, Craig Hammer, Umar Serajuddin, Brian Stacy, Michael Weber, Norman Loayza, Aly Sanoh, Thomas Danielewitz, Vasco Molini, Farid Tadros, Anja Robakowski, Pechiyappan Muthukumar, Ramin Aliyev, Ana Maria Munoz Boudet, and Maurizio Bussolo. The team is grateful for the guidance and leadership of Hana Brixi, Andrea Kucey, and Laura Rawlings and for Leslie Ashby’s editorial support. ii BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE FOR GENDER DATA Gender data are essential for identifying key challenges others. Gender data are important because they provide and opportunities to accelerate progress toward the knowledge to understand and address existing disparities World Bank Group’s twin goals of ending extreme between men and women, boys and girls. poverty and boosting shared prosperity. Gender data - or gender statistics - is an umbrella term for data that are Gender data are instrumental for the design of disaggregated by sex and meet additional requirements development policies and programs, and for monitoring to ensure that data captures relevant gender differences progress and outcomes toward achieving gender equality. in thematic coverage, methodology, and data collection They are needed to measure structural constraints and approaches (see Box 1). Gender data go beyond simple devise solutions to close persistent gaps across the public sex-disaggregation to include data that affect women and private sectors. Figure 1 shows how gender data can and girls exclusively or primarily, such as data on gender- support better development outcomes, building on the based violence; sexual, reproductive, and maternal data framework developed for the World Development health; and attitudes toward gender social norms, among Report (WDR) 2021: Data for Better Lives. BOX 1. WHAT ARE GENDER DATA? Gender statistics are defined by the sum of the following characteristics: • Data are collected and presented by sex as a primary and overall classification • Data reflect gender issues • Data are based on concepts and definitions that adequately reflect the diversity of women and men and capture all aspects of their lives • Data collection methods consider stereotypes and social and cultural factors that may induce gender bias in the data Source: UNSD 2016 1 FIGURE 1. HOW GENDER DATA SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT Data analytics and processing Individuals, Civil Society, Greater transparency Academia Greater accountability to track progress on narrowing gender gaps along the lifecycle Reuse Gender data Government, International Better policy making Development production and More data on individuals collection Organizations and service delivery including self-reported data on women and men, and members that take into account the of the LGBTI community di erential needs and preferences of di erent groups Reuse The addition and use of gender data in the production process of firms Increased business opportunities Private Sector Source: Adapted from World Development Report 2021. Based on key recommendations from the WDR 2021 the World Bank Group is implementing a new data agenda. In 2021, the World Bank established a new data governance architecture to set and implement data priorities across the World Bank’s internal data landscape and operational portfolio through its World Bank Data Roadmap.1 This action plan launched mission-critical implementation of the data priorities, which include explicit goals for gender data and using the new Global Data Facility (see Box 2) to support implementation of recommendations emerging from the WDR 2021. BOX 2. THE WORLD BANK-HOSTED GLOBAL DATA FACILITY The Global Data Facility (GDF) serves as a priority vehicle to support countries’ statistical systems and data capital priorities within the WB’s core portfolio. It undertakes investments in data systems and capacity in low- and middle-income countries. It will catalyze financing from across international organizations (including IBRD and IDA), serve as a coordination mechanism for global data support, and enable increased domestic financing for national and subnational data and statistical systems. Through the GDF, countries can work with development partners to invest in the data and capacity that underpins progress across all the SDGs, increasing the coordination and efficiency of other investments, enabling accountability, and accelerating progress. Within the strategy for the GDF, there are priorities for both gender data and administrative data – through the latter, World Bank Group could collect data on women that otherwise would not get captured in more traditional household surveys. 1 The World Bank’s new data governance architecture and the World Bank Data Roadmap can only be accessed internally. 2 Gender data have cross-cutting significance and are Data have also been critical to increasing women’s access relevant for all sectors and operations of the World Bank to economic opportunities around the world. In Albania, Group. Gender considerations are important in developing the World Bank leveraged in-depth data analysis on gaps in effective solutions to critical development challenges, women’s access to assets and labor markets, to motivate the such as climate change or fragility, conflict, and violence. government to develop a multi-sectoral reform program The importance of gender data is reflected in corporate supported through the first entirely gender-focused World goals, commitments, and objectives of the World Bank Bank Development Policy Loan (World Bank 2019). Findings Group (see Appendix A). Gender data are also relevant from the World Bank Group’s Women, Business and the to understand intersectionality, and as such, critical for Law (WBL) initiative supported legal reform in Gabon and inclusive development outcomes the World Bank Group led to the drafting and dissemination of new family code in strives to achieve. the Democratic Republic of the Congo (World Bank 2022). In Mexico, World Bank Group analytical work revealed key Better gender data can be used to improve sectoral obstacles to the use of childcare services. It used 2015 outcomes and to inform global actions to accelerate census data to predict the impact of additional daycare equality across the globe. For example, data on the centers on female labor force participation. Based on prevalence of gender-based violence (GBV) have been this data, the Ministry of Finance adjusted its investment successfully used to advocate for policy reform in many scheme to prioritize vulnerable and marginalized women, countries. This includes Vietnam where data informed among other factors (De Paz and Muller 2021). In Fiji, an IFC the National Strategy on Gender Equality and was used to study found that each year, business and the public sector design and implement counseling, health, legal, and shelter in Fiji are losing an average of 12.7 workdays per employee services for survivors of GBV (World Bank 2021). Findings due to responsibilities of working parents. In response to from the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) respectful the recommendations from this study, the government of workplaces studies have informed private sector clients Fiji allocated a line in the national budget (2019-2020) and on the business costs associated with workplace violence established a taskforce to support Early Childhood Care and harassment, influencing companies, such as a tuna- and Education. processing facility in Solomon Islands, to adopt policies and implement good practices to proactively address the issue. This has benefited companies by reducing absenteeism and turnover and increasing employee productivity and well-being (IFC 2022). 3 Better data on the needs of working parents have also spearheaded the generation of the global evidence base been used to design and improve family-friendly policies on work and employment, asset ownership and rights, and for private sector clients. Through childcare needs entrepreneurship. The World Bank Group has conducted assessments—which include analyzing company policies years of methodological research activities with a focus and practices, human resources data, employee surveys, on individual-level sex-disaggregated data to better interviews, and focus groups—IFC has helped clients in understand the economic realities faced by men and Mexico, Bangladesh and Pakistan identify key areas of women within households. This research has culminated opportunity to improve employability and labor conditions in several publications outlining international guidelines for working parents and caretakers while investing in and recommendations for improving respondent selection better business outcomes (IFC 2017). In addition, IFC as an and questionnaire design for key dimensions of men’s and accredited licensing partner for Economic Dividends for women’s economic opportunities and welfare. Table 1 Gender Equality (EDGE) Certification, supports companies shows a summary of key recommendations. It is imperative to assess and identify opportunities to close gender gaps to acknowledge, however, that despite significant at the workplace, where EDGE-certified companies are advancements, data pertaining to gender disparities evaluated according to global and industry benchmarks within the private sector remain restricted and necessitate across four pillars: gender balance at all levels, equal pay additional endeavors. for equivalent work, effective policies and practices to ensure equitable career flows, and an inclusive culture. World Bank research and experimentation has bolstered the case for data collection at the individual level not at the household level. Even when data are collected at the Evolution of Gender Data and World Bank individual level, the questions are often asked of a single Group Contributions “most-knowledgeable” household member or the “head of Over the past decade, gender data has received increased household”. Asking one household member to report on attention and visibility. The advent of the Sustainable others’ personal information (proxy reporting), compared Development Goals (SDGs) has led to an increased focus to having all members reporting themselves (self- on sex-disaggregation of a core set of development reporting) can generate misleading results and, specifically, indicators. New actors, initiatives, and platforms have gender- biased data (Bardasi et al. 2011, Kilic et al. 2020b; propelled gender data to the forefront of the development Hasanbasri et al. 2022a). The recommended respondent agenda.2 The World Bank Group has fostered partnerships selection approach is therefore to give each adult across the gender data ecosystem. These efforts have led household member (18+) the opportunity to self-report to progress in narrowing gender data gaps in human and information regarding their own education, health, labor, physical capital endowments and women’s economic ownership of and rights to physical and financial assets, opportunities (Data2X 2020). and report information on nonfarm household enterprises that they own or manage. Even if not fully implemented, Over the past decade, World Bank efforts have focused self-response rates can at least be improved by adding on improving women’s economic empowerment more instructions in the questionnaire, in survey manuals, data, in line with its mission to end extreme poverty and for enumerators that highlight a strong preference for and boost shared prosperity. In partnership with key self-reporting over proxy reporting. international actors the World Bank Group has co-led and 2  ey organizational players from the gender data community include UN Women, ILO, WHO, Paris21, Data2X, ODW, and many others K to build the evidence base and guidelines for gender data production and use. For an overview of guidelines, solutions, and promising measurement approaches from the aforementioned organizations across various thematic areas, see repositories from Data2x and ODW and EM2030. 4 TABLE 1: SUMMARY OF GENDER DATA RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS FROM WB-PARTNERED INITIATIVES Asset Ownership and Control Work and Employment Entrepreneurship Define relevant asset categories Follow standards for definition Include screening questions for country (including land) of work and employment to improve identification of and identify priority assets for adopted by the 19th International household nonfarm enterprises. the questionnaire. Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS-19). Directly interview at least one of Allow for multiple owners to be the associated managers for each recorded for assets: exclusive In addition to 7-day employment household nonfarm enterprise. versus joint ownership. screening questions for different activities at the Separately identify who owns the Ensure that all types of land beginning of the employment household nonfarm enterprise are considered. module, include recovery and who in the household questions to avoid missing less manages/runs it. For land, include questions on formal forms of work. different ownership constructs and the bundle of rights. Consider other income-earning activities such as household enterprises and farming activities. Ask about the control over earnings. Consider collecting time use in key non-income generating activities (preparing meals, childcare, and cleaning). Respondent Selection Encourage self-reporting over proxy reporting of information regarding one’s own education, health, labor, ownership of and rights to physical and financial assets, and nonfarm household enterprises that one owns or manages. Identify the type of reporting. When reported by proxy, record the ID of the proxy respondent. Source: Compilation of recommendations in Bonfert et al. 2022 Nonetheless, important data availability and quality challenges remain and need to be urgently addressed. As of December 2020, only 39 percent of the gender data needed to monitor the SDGs were available (UN Women 2021).3 While this is an improvement from just 33 percent in 2019, the gap remains wide. No world region has data available for even half of the SDG gender indicators (see Figure 2). UN Women calculated that it would take at least 22 years for countries to close data gaps needed to measure gender-related SDG indicators alone (UN Women 2022). 3  hese calculations are based on 72 gender-related indicators, which include 10 new indicators added in 2020 on food insecurity, health T workers by type of occupation, educational level and completion rate, and others. 5 FIGURE 2. AVAILABILITY OF SDG GENDER INDICATORS BY REGION (N=215 COUNTRIES) Source: Beegle, Serajuddin, Stacy, and Wadhwa (2022) Note: The figure shows the coverage of 50 SDGs, which the authors determined were gender-related indicators. Coverage is defined as having at least one annual data point in the five-year period from 2016 to 2020 for an indicator as compiled by the UN. The line in the graph is the average SDG gender indicator availability across all countries (23%) and the large black dots signify the average SDG gender indicator availability across all countries in a certain region. The smaller dots are country averages. 6 Looking beyond the SDGs, gender data gaps exist across all critical development themes (Data2X 2020). While specific gender data gaps can be difficult to identify,4 some examples include land rights, women’s entrepreneurship and employment by occupation, wealth, care, women on boards, conflict and crime, technology, climate and environment, water and energy, social norms, and data on the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) community (see Box 3). Cross-country comparable, publicly disseminated data on women’s financial services, entrepreneurship, and leadership in private sector institutions are not available for most countries, and international standards do not exist to measure this (Data2X 2020).5 Achieving gender equality will require accurate data for existing and emerging key policy themes to measure progress. BOX 3. EMERGING DATA THEME: SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY (SOGI) The World Bank Group has been a pioneer in collecting SOGI disaggregated data. Using these data, World Bank studies in Serbia and Thailand, among others, show that LGBTI people experience lower socio-economic outcomes due to discrimination, exclusion, and violence. Such analyses cannot be produced at large scale because national statistical offices do not include questions in their surveys that allow for collecting SOGI disaggregated data. As a result, the World Bank and the UNDP created A Set of Proposed Indicators for the LGBTI Inclusion Index. The World Bank also published The Equality of Opportunity for Sexual and Gender Minorities (EQOSOGI), a report that uses the Women, Business and the Law approach to assess laws and regulations affecting LGBTI people. The International Finance Corporation launched an Economic Inclusion program to support LGBTI people and persons with disabilities and partners with the private sector on practices to promote inclusive banking for LGBTI individuals, see report Inclusive Banking: Emerging Practices to Advance the Economic Inclusion of LGBTI People. 4  everal gender data gap assessments exist, but they tend to vary in scope, thematic areas, and regions of interest. The scope and S methodology determine the type of gender data gaps on which the assessment focuses (i.e., coverage, frequency, alignment with international standards, quality, or open access) and the specific set of indicators that are being reviewed (i.e., gender-related SDGs, UN Minimum Set of Gender Indicators, or a thematic subset). See Resources for a list of available gender data gap assessments and tools. 5  ven internationally recommended firm-level indicators are limited. Only 1 of the 62 UN Minimum Set of Gender Indicators relates to E firm leadership/ownership (“Proportion of women in managerial positions”) while another indicator “Percentage of adult population who are entrepreneurs, by sex” was recently removed from the indicator set. 7 Improvements in measurement are needed across a wide gender outcomes can only be partially answered or not range of topics. For example, it is widely recognized that at all. Without relevant data, recovery efforts will be less social norms are an important determinant of gender effective. At the same time, the pandemic disrupted data outcomes, yet there is a lack of consistent measurement collection. At the height of the pandemic, nine in 10 National and adequate data collection tools (Bussolo et al. 2022). Statistics Offices (NSOs) in low and lower middle-income Social norms are conceptually difficult to measure and countries had difficulty meeting international reporting quantify and, as a result, are often proxied with individual requirements (UNDESA and World Bank 2020). Many attitudes or outcomes. Recent data collection efforts countries had to rely on phone surveys, which are often have focused on capturing two important dimensions not well suited for collecting gender-relevant information of a social norm: a person’s agreement with a statement by how much and what data they are suited to collect and (personal beliefs) and their expectations about their whether data are collected at the household level. neighbors’ agreement (normative expectation) (see for example the Gender Equality at Home Survey as discussed Thematic Gaps in Gender Data in World Bank 2022). However, additional measurement The World Bank Group’s new Gender Strategy is an work is needed to better capture different elements that opportunity to double down on existing gender data indicate the presence and strength of social norms and efforts and to focus on thematic areas where gender data to understand correlations with attitudes, behaviors, and is currently lacking. While compiling a comprehensive individual beliefs (see Table 2). list of needs for data collection and methodological Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the improvements would require an extensive consultation acute need for more sex-disaggregated and gender- process with experts and custodian agencies across the related data. Despite repeated calls for action, gaps in whole development community, Table 2 highlights several sex-disaggregated data related to the COVID-19 pandemic entry points for data collection, consistent adoption of have remained pervasive, severely limiting a complete international standards and practices, and development of assessment of the gender impacts of the pandemic (World new or improved methods and tools. Bank 2021). Many questions on the impact of COVID-19 on 8 TABLE 2: GENDER DATA GAPS AND AREAS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH Theme Data Methods Assets • Expand data collection on assets to include rights Improve methods for understanding to own, bequeath, and sell (not just ownership of joint asset ownership and rights, various assets) and for estimating asset values and individual wealth • Collect data on financial literacy (not just financial inclusion) Care • Expand data on time use and care work (disaggregated • Improve methods through which into childcare, eldercare, and care for persons with time use data are collected disabilities) • Integrate questions related to care • Expand data on the financing needs of care providers into business enterprise and other relevant surveys • Collect reliable data on the various actors involved in the public and private provision of care (i.e. firms that provide care services and persons employed in the labor force in the care economy) Climate Change • Collect data on the impacts of climate change on men • Develop and test requisite survey and women (including gender gaps in change in poverty modules status, and of morbidity and mortality from slow and rapid-onset extreme events, such as drought or floods) • UNFCCC climate finance tracking; joint MDB disclosures • Collect data on gender gaps in employment, entrepreneurship and leadership in climate-vulnerable sectors (e.g., agriculture, livestock, fisheries, forestry, tourism and others) and in high-emitting sectors such as energy, transport, agriculture, construction, and industry) • Collect data on the amount (including percentage) of climate finance and of national/ local budgets targeted to women directly Conflict • Collect data specific to conflict settings: women’s Develop guidelines for collecting data resiliency in conflict settings, violence in conflict from women in conflict settings settings • Collect data on women’s participation or leadership in peace-building processes Crime and justice • Collect sex-disaggregated data on human trafficking, Improve methods for collecting such prison populations, workers in the criminal justice and information through administrative legal systems (judges, lawyers, police, etc.) data systems 9 TABLE 2: GENDER DATA GAPS AND AREAS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH (CONT.) Theme Data Methods Entrepreneurship • Expand gender indicators primarily at extensive margin • Improve methods for collecting high- by adding indicators at intensive margin: for example, quality representative cross-country share of women with access to finance and the size of sex-disaggregated data on enterprise loans for women ownership, as well as cross-country harmonization of the data • Collect characteristics of women-owned enterprises (not just the numbers/shares), such as informality, • Develop guidelines for collecting and firm size and age profiles, high-level financials, and processing sex-disaggregated data drivers of firm productivity and growth that could help from the private sector (e.g., spend and analyze factors associated with women’s participation or contracts with suppliers, distributors, etc.) empowerment • Collect more data from private sector companies related to their customers and the composition of their suppliers, distributors, and producers. Environment Collect sex-disaggregated data on access and use Develop and test requisite survey modules related to WASH (water, sanitation, hygiene), energy, and improve methods for collecting data and transportation through administrative data systems Fiscal Policy Engender the Commitment to Equity (CEQ) methodology to collect data that allow for examination of gender differences in various taxes and transfers Gender-based • Disaggregate GBV data by age (to include experiences of • Ensure adherence to ethical and safety Violence children prior to age 15) recommendations • Collect data on forced sexual initiation and digitally- • Improve methods for collecting GBV enabled GBV data through special topic surveys and administrative data systems and for • Expand data collection on reasons for not seeking help integrating survey data with service-based to stop violence GBV data • Collect data on financial abuse and main channels and • Invest in improving measurement strategies used by perpetrators of economic violence, harassment, emotional and sexual violence • Collect data on the public-private partnerships for GBV service provision and their benefits Sexual Orientation Collect data on LGBTI communities, including but not Create international guidelines and best and Gender Identity limited to: violence against LGBTI persons, legal rights for/ practices for collecting SOGI data and (SOGI) against LGBTI people, social norms and attitudes toward guidance for incorporating the right LGBTI people, experiences of LGBTI people in education, questions to move beyond binary sex workplace, services, tourism, and other settings (i.e., (male/female) disaggregation in surveys bullying and discrimination), private sector inclusion of (including Business Enterprise surveys) and, LGBTI people potentially, censuses 10 TABLE 2: GENDER DATA GAPS AND AREAS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH (CONT.) Theme Data Methods Social norms • Collect data on norms and attitudes around the • Develop cross-country validated suitability of women’s employment and women’s roles measures to assess presence of norms, within the household their intensity, and correlations with attitudes, behaviors, and individual beliefs Technology • Publicly disseminate sex-disaggregated data on internet • Improve methods for collecting high- access and use quality representative cross-country sex- disaggregated data on access and use of • Expand sex-disaggregated data collection on mobile digital technologies phone access and use, as well as access and use of technology for educational purposes • Create guidelines for collecting ICT access and use data from digital • Collect data on digital literacy and skills platform providers Work and • Collect data on female participation in STEM jobs • Improve methods for collecting sex- employment disaggregated data on informal • Regularly collect data for specific industries, occupations, employment and professions (not just overall sectors) • Expand data collection efforts to include • Adopt cross-country comparable methods for data other C-suite in benchmarking and collection on earnings/wages develop gender disclosure guidelines and consistent taxonomy to include • Consistently use industry classification in the labor “senior management” force to ensure comparability of sector classification across countries • Consistently use proper employment and work definitions in alignment with ICLS 19 • Expand data collection on women in leadership positions to include other C-suite and senior management roles from listed companies 11 Challenges and Development Between 2017 and 2019, seven donors comprised 80 Community Priorities percent of all gender data financing from donors, with the World Bank as the top donor at 28 percent of total funding Gender data face the classic problem of other global (PARIS21 2021).6 public goods, which offer great value but little incentive to fund or supply. The value of gender data is often at the Gender data remain underfunded. Core gender data cross-country comparison level, and as such, individual systems, which include censuses, surveys, and administrative countries have limited incentives to regularly compile all systems, have been underfunded by about $450 million relevant data in alignment with international standards and per year in the past 6 years (Data2x and Open Data Watch methods. Furthermore, it has been difficult (vis-à-vis gender 2021). It is only recently that knowledge platforms like data production) to fundraise for methodological research the Clearinghouse for Financing Development Data have and formulation of best practices that inform the advice been created to provide insights into financing for gender provided to countries for compiling such data. Gender data data. The development community and donors should gaps emerge at different stages of the data lifecycle and use the insights learned from those platforms and from cannot be tackled by isolated, disjointed efforts. Given the mechanisms like gender-responsive budgeting to pinpoint nature of gender data as a public good, there is a strong areas for catalyzing finance for gender data production and rationale for the involvement of international development use. This all comes during a time when government funding banks in addressing gender data gaps (Francavilla 2019). for both overall national statistics and gender statistics had Furthermore, the global community has the potential to already been stagnant since 2015, with a mere 13 percent of provide supplementary incentives by gathering cross- countries worldwide dedicating a portion of their budget to national data that would encourage countries to evaluate gender statistics (PARIS21 2021; ODW and Data2X 2021). their achievements vis-à-vis their peers and learn from the most effective approaches when enacting gender policies. 6  aris21 calculation is based on data on commitments (2019 prices) from the PRESS database, which builds on OECD’s Creditor P Reporting System (CRS), PRESS survey, International Aid Transparency Initiative database, and donor portals (see PARIS21 2020 for detailed methodology and 2021 for figure). 12 Continued methodological improvements to national that combine survey data with data from technologies multi-topic household surveys are needed to obtain like activity trackers for time use analysis or satellites accurate sex-disaggregated data. National multi-topic using nighttime lights for GBV and women’s economic household surveys are the premier source of gender data empowerment analysis (World Bank Group 2015; in the SDG era. Methodological work on intra-household Ouedraogo and Stenzel 2021). individual-level data collection should continue. This research will contribute to informing on how to collect such Another barrier to meeting international reporting data (such as how to resolve discrepancies in reporting requirements and maximizing use of gender data is lack within household) and in what context individual data of sex-disaggregated data processing. In many cases, matter most. countries have already collected the necessary data for calculating gender-relevant indicators through existing Some key topics such as gender-based violence, time surveys and administrative sources but the data are use, and social norms about masculinity and femininity, simply not disaggregated. This can be due to limited require specialized survey efforts. For topics around capacity within the NSO to process the data for proper climate change, ICT, and SOGI, for which there are no sex-disaggregation or to calculate the indicators for SDG international standards, requisite survey modules must and other international reporting purposes. New or revised be developed and tested to provide a set of guidelines international standards and definitions for collecting and and model questionnaires. The standardization of new harmonizing private sector data and survey data, often methods/guidelines will require close collaboration require capacity building trainings to help data producers amongst international organizations as well as thematic calculate and harmonize gender indicators. It is estimated and statistical working groups. that if all indicators for which there are currently any data were published with sex-disaggregation, gender data In addition to household surveys, there are other data availability would rise by 30 to 40 percent across regions sources that can be utilized to generate gender statistics. (Wahabzada 2021). Nontraditional sources of data include administrative data from registry systems like civil registration and Data accessibility issues remain a key constraint to better vital statistics (CRVS) or service-based data systems like uptake and use of gender data. To enhance accessibility, Health, Education, or Gender-Based Violence Information gender data and statistical or analytical publications that Management Systems, transactional data from private present or use gender data should be (i) digitally available sector services, crowdsourcing data from mobile phones in a public database or on a government or corporate and internet, satellite data, and citizen-generated data website, (ii) presented in both the native language and (Vaitla 2014; Data2x 2021; World Bank 2021). Due to English, (iii) complemented by sufficient metadata, and their continuous and frequent collection, high levels of (iv) available to download in multiple formats (Kumar et granularity and intersectionality, and potential to cover al. 2020). Even when gender data are digitally and publicly perceptions, these sources hold great promises. available, the data site might not be easily found in search engines or might have poor speed or performance. Open Nontraditional data can be a useful complement to Data Watch calculates that 1 in 4 national statistical office traditional data especially in between rounds of official (NSO) data sites have higher than average downtimes. surveys, but there are important caveats. Given the This means that data users are not able to access critical recency of big data analytics, there is little methodological datasets and publications because the sites are often consensus and research around using nontraditional offline, forcing them to find data elsewhere and reducing sources for gender data analysis or methods for integrating the likelihood that data users will return or deem the NSO various data types.7 Methodological experiments must a reliable data source (Rudow 2019). be conducted on data fusion or hybrid approaches 7  ue to their limited access to mobile phone, internet, and bank accounts, women are less-represented in big data that is used to train D machine-learning models. As outlined in the 2021 WDR, care must be taken to ensure the data sufficiently reflect women and men in ways that are unbiased, otherwise these biases will be exacerbated through the algorithms. 13 Increased use of gender data for policymaking remains data and capacity. As such, data literacy training efforts a priority. In many countries, policy reform and program should not only include data producers from NSOs, but design have been directly informed and shaped by gender also policymakers from various ministries, civil society data, but there remain opportunities to further feed data organizations, the private sector, media, academia, and the and evidence into action. Stakeholders should nurture general populace. an ecosystem of diverse gender data users, building their capacity to not only understand data but also convey In sum, gender data face challenges related to availability, insights to colleagues. The use of gender data by diverse quality, processing, access, and use. Figure 3 summarizes actors can catalyze a demand for more and better core gender data issues and highlights related development gender data, which will, in turn, increase investments in community priorities. FIGURE 3. GENDER DATA CHALLENGES AND DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY PRIORITIES Pillar I: Availability Pillar II: Quality Pillar III: Processing Pillar IV: Access Pillar V: Uptake Collected Data not collected but methodolo ic lly we k Methodologically strong but not dis re ted or t bul ted Disaggregated & tabulated but not publicly dissemin ted Curated & accessible but not used for decision m kin • Lack of funding • Lack of international • No disaggregation by • Inability to easily access • Lack of demand for standards and methods sex and other gender data gender data • Lack of surveys overall characteristics • Inappropriate or • Lack of timely gender • No incentives for • Lack of special topic Challenges incomplete • No calculation of statistical abstracts, data uptake and use surveys questionnaire design relevant indicators factbooks, or reports • Inability to • Insu icient topic • Flawed respondent • Limited tabulation • No communication and understand/analyze coverage selection and fieldwork dissemination strategy gender data • Lack of technical protocols capacity or personnel for data collection activities Exp nd investments to Develop nd v lid te Sc le up investments Empower d t producers Nurture nd ecosystem Recommendations re ul rly collect improved methods for nd exp nd e orts to in the public nd priv te of ender d t users to sex-dis re ted nd ender d t production, f cilit te proper d t sectors to follow n open f cilit te d t upt ke for ender-rel ted d t in p rticul rly dis re tion, d t policy, m kin pro r ms nd policies existin nd new technolo y-b sed h rmoniz tion, nd ender d t nd n lysis them tic re s usin innov tive methods, indic tor c lcul tion free, publicly v il ble, both tr dition l nd speci l topic surveys, nd ccessible in nontr dition l methods nd intr -household tr nsp rent m nner individu l-level d t collection Build nd exp nd p rtnerships cross the ender d t ecosystem Source: Authors’ elaboration 14 OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE The World Bank Group is engaged in many gender Investing in Data Collection to Improve data initiatives to help address the aforementioned Data Availability challenges. Figure 4 maps past and ongoing gender data As a premier financier of data in developing countries, the projects and partnerships8 to the five pillars of the data World Bank Group invests in both national and firm-level production cycle. The World Bank Group emphasizes close data collection efforts and houses several of its own data collaboration and partnership with UN agencies, other collection initiatives that produce valuable internationally international organizations, national governments, the comparable data. private sector, and advocacy groups to advance the gender data agenda. This gender data inventory highlights the The World Bank contributes to and invests in data for breadth and depth of the World Bank Group’s engagement development, through its investments in data collection across the entire data production cycle. It is followed by a as part of broader support for national statistical capacity brief description of each gender data activity. and systems. The World Bank Group undertakes Statistical FIGURE 4: PAST AND ONGOING WORLD BANK GROUP GENDER DATA PROJECTS AND PARTNERSHIPS Pillar I: Availability Pillar II: Quality Pillar III: Processing Pillar IV: Access Pillar V: Uptake B. Methodological C. Data calculation D. Data curation A. Data collection E. Data use research and disaggregation and dissemination • Close working • Premier research • Technical capacity • Data curation • Possibility to relationships with institution and training infrastructure with influence CDFs, SCDs, Challenges NSOs through the spearheading framework to rigorous criteria, DPOs, IPFs etc. Poverty GP and LSMS methodological work conduct statistical frequent updates, through gender data workshops through and early access to key and evidence • Close working Statistical Capacity datasets (WBL, Findex) relationships with Building operations private sector through • Microdata Library for IFC partnerships dissemination of national datasets • Statistical Capacity • MEXA, WWEP** • Statistical Capacity • Gender Data Portal • Gender data Building projects Building projects used for diagnostics, • Time use • 2-pg country (D4P)** (D4P)** operational design, measurement** gender landscapes and results Recommendations • Strengthening Gender • Strengthening Gender • Informality • Internal WBG gender measurement Statistics (SGS) Project Statistics Project measurement databases (IFC) • Gender data leveraged • LSMS-ISA, LSMS+** • LSMS+** • MAGNET, • SGS Project in policy dialogue • WBL**, Global Findex** WEMNS, GILS • HIPSO-JII • Little Databook • Enterprise Surveys** • Intra-household & on Gender Individual-Level • We-Data, WE-Finance Code • Poverty Estimation** • MSME Gender • LSMS+** Finance Gap **Included in World B nk Group Gender Str te y 2016−2023 Source: Authors’ elaboration 8 It is outside the scope of this thematic note to evaluate these past and ongoing activities and partnerships. 15 Capacity Building (StatCap) projects, which make major investments in country statistical systems and provide financial and technical assistance to NSOs and line ministries to collect and use gender data.9 As part of this, the IDA-financed Data for Policy (D4P) initiative supports a range of activities at the country- and regional-level, including implementation of surveys and censuses and capital investments in physical and technological infrastructure used by NSOs. Among other activities, these projects target the collection of household surveys to improve upon the availability of sex-disaggregated data, as well as additional data sets that will strengthen the economic and social statistics of these countries. Gender indicators are embedded in the results framework for these operations (see Box 4). BOX 4. ACHIEVING THE GENDER TAG IN STATISTICAL CAPACITY OPERATIONS World Bank statistical capacity operations aiming to receive the gender tag (gender tagged World Bank operations are those whose design includes a logical chain addressing an identified gender gap) need to include the results indicator “Number of UNSD Minimum List gender indicators available using data collected within the past 5 years” in their results framework. The UNSD Minimum List of gender indicators refers to a list of 52 quantitative indicators and 11 qualitative indicators related to national norms developed by the Inter-Agency and Expert Group on Gender Statistics under the auspices of the United Nations Statistical Division (UNSD). The list was prepared to serve as a guide for prioritization within the national production and international compilation of gender statistics. As of September 2022, 21 of the 24 currently active StatCap operations were gender tagged. 9  s of September 2022, the World Bank Group had 24 active StatCap operations totaling $2,483 million in lending commitments. This A corresponds to approximately 3.7 percent of the total IBRD/IDA portfolio for fiscal year 2021. StatCap operations are implemented in six regions, with more than half of all currently active operations (58 percent) under way in Africa, followed by Latin America (17 percent), East Asia and Pacific (13 percent), Eastern Europe and Central Asia (8 percent), and South Asia (4 percent). More than two-thirds of projects are exclusively IDA-financed (71 percent). 16 The Living Standards Measurement Study –Plus (LSMS+) The Women, Business and the Law (WBL) initiative collects project supports NSOs in improving the availability and data on the laws and regulations that affect women’s quality of individual-disaggregated survey data on asset economic opportunity and incentives to work. It identifies ownership and work and employment, with an emphasis on specific obstacles that women entrepreneurs and conducting intra-household, private interviews with adult employees face when starting businesses and getting jobs. household members. LSMS+ was established, partially, in response to the IDA18 gender data commitment to support The Enterprise Surveys gather cross-country comparable at least six IDA countries in operationalizing the latest firm-level data on a broad range of topics, including access international standards on individual-disaggregated data to finance, infrastructure, and performance alongside collection on asset ownership and work and employment. women’s participation in firm ownership, management, It has also supported methodological and policy research. and workforce composition in 139 countries. The Enterprise Analysis Unit also collected data to measure the impact The Strengthening Gender Statistics (SGS) project provides of COVID-19 on the private sector through follow-up firm technical assistance to NSOs in 12 low-income IDA-eligible surveys in roughly 44 countries covering length of firm countries to improve the availability, quality, and use of closure for women-owned businesses and percentage of gender data related to economic status and outcomes. The women laid off due to COVID-19. SGS project draws on expertise from the World Bank Gender Group, the Poverty and Equity Global Practice, and the As part of the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative Development Data Group’s Living Standards Measurement (We-Fi), the Entrepreneurship Database (We-Data) project Study (LSMS) program. The project takes advantage of the collected data on women’s business ownership and World Bank’s long-standing engagements with NSOs and directorship in 170 economies from 2014 to 2018, concerted efforts through the LSMS+ Initiative and the responding to the lack of comprehensive and comparable Women’s Work and Employment Partnership to improve sex-disaggregated data on women’s entrepreneurship. the availability and quality of individual-disaggregated Additionally, We-Fi has launched the Women Entrepreneurs survey data on economic outcomes. Finance Code (WE-Finance Code), a global framework that aims to address systematically gender and data The LSMS-Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) gaps in financing and supporting women entrepreneurs. project collaborates with the NSOs of partner countries It will equip financial service providers with finance and in Sub-Saharan Africa to design and implement systems tools that will allow them to produce and report on sex- of multi-topic, nationally representative, panel household disaggregated finance data to regulatory authorities, surveys with a strong focus on agriculture. These surveys business associations, and partners for increased collect detailed information at the individual level to transparency in the financial sector. understand men’s and women’s agricultural and other income activities. The SME Finance Forum, managed by the International Finance Corporation, was established by the G20 Global The World Bank Group has a long track-record of Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GFPRI) in 2012 as a improving gender statistics through investments in knowledge center for data, research, and best practices dedicated datasets. Gender data generated through these in promoting finance for small and medium enterprises efforts inform research and operational design both within (SMEs). As part of this initiative, the MSME Finance Gap and outside the institution. database was established, which measures the financing demand of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) The Global Findex database collects data on three in emerging markets. Data on the total number of dimensions of financial inclusion: accounts (ownership, enterprises and the degree of access to credit are available purposes, uses and barriers to use, alternatives), savings by country, gender, and enterprise size. behavior (through formal accounts or community-based methods, purposes), and borrowing (sources of funds, use of credit cards, and purposes). Cross-comparable national level data are available by sex, age group, and household income level for 123 economies as of 2021. 17 Through the Financial Alliance for Women, the Women’s Efforts to build the international evidence base on gender Financial Inclusion Data Partnership (WFID) was created to data involve collaboration across many units at the World explore the collection and use of sex-disaggregated data Bank Group. In particular, the partnership between the across the financial sector. The partnership, which includes World Bank’s Gender Group and Development Data both the World Bank and the International Finance Group’s Data Production and Methods unit, which houses Corporation, is helping to increase the capture, analysis, the LSMS program, has been the common denominator and reporting of sex-disaggregated banking data around across these efforts. Some World Bank LSMS initiatives the world. This will deepen understanding of the financial include the following: services gap that women face and further develop the women’s banking market. • The World Bank LSMS team worked with UN Evidence and Data for Gender Equality (EDGE) and the Uganda Bureau Phone surveys like the World Bank’s high frequency of Statistics to implement the Methodological Experiment household surveys (HFHS) in over 100 countries have been on Measuring Asset Ownership (MEXA) from a Gender a valuable tool for monitoring real-time disparities during Perspective. This randomized household survey experiment the COVID-19 pandemic, despite their potential biases and tested the relative effects of different approaches to lack of representativeness limiting the analysis of gender- respondent selection and questionnaire design on estimates differentiated impacts. Such gender-related biases may of ownership of and rights to physical and financial assets. result from non-random respondent selection, low female MEXA directly informed the design of six national surveys mobile phone ownership, length of surveys, and non- that were supported by the UN EDGE project and the response or biased responses on sensitive topics like GBV international guidelines on producing statistics on asset (Beegle et al. 2021). ownership from a gender perspective. The Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and • The Women’s Work and Employment Partnership Adolescents (GFF) is a multi-stakeholder global partnership (WWEP) is a joint effort of the World Bank’s LSMS team housed at the World Bank that is committed to ensuring all and Gender Group, the International Labour Organization women, children, and adolescents can survive and thrive. (ILO), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the During the COVID-19 pandemic, GFF launched an effort to United Nations (FAO), and Data 2X. The WWEP is focused monitor essential health services. It is helping Ministries on operationalizing new international definitions of Health in 22 low and middle-income countries to (approved at the 19th International Conference of Labor produce real-time data on service delivery and utilization Statisticians) of work and employment that recognize of essential women’s and children’s health services, through all productive activities, paid and unpaid. The results faster processing of health management information have informed guidelines for the measurement of system (HMIS) data and rapid cycle, phone-based employment, unemployment, and labor underutilization facility surveys. in household surveys. Investing in Methodological Research to • The Measures for Advancing Gender Equality (MAGNET) Improve Data Quality initiative is a collaboration between the World Bank’s Africa Gender Innovation Lab and LSMS teams, the International The World Bank Group, as a premier research institution, Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the International is spearheading methodological research efforts to Rescue Committee (IRC), and Oxford University. MAGNET generate evidence and contribute to international aims to broaden and deepen the measurement of important guidelines. The World Bank Group has a demonstrated dimensions of women’s agency for which the body of existing track record in leading and galvanizing partnerships around methods is weak or under-tested. This includes women’s the development of improved methods and international control and ownership over assets, decision making, goal- standards for individual-disaggregated survey data setting capacity, individual and collective self-efficacy, and collection on key dimensions of men’s and women’s control over time allocation. livelihoods, welfare, and empowerment. 18 • The LSMS is also leading methodological research activities The World Bank Group is also a key contributor to the on time use measurement, in partnership with IFPRI and 50x2030 initiative, a 10-year multi-partner initiative University of Hohenheim, to understand the potential seeking to close the agricultural data gap by transforming of technology (specifically smartphone-based time use agricultural data systems across 50 low and middle- diaries and physical activity trackers) in improving men’s and income countries by 2030 through three components: women’s time use. It is also researching intra-household data production, methodological research, and data use. and individual-level estimation of poverty in partnership The World Bank LSMS team leads technical assistance for with the World Bank Gender Group, the Institute of Fiscal agricultural surveys in line with the existing and tested Studies, and Simon Fraser University. It is also developing survey methods of the LSMS-ISA project. As of September a scale and associated framework protocols for measuring 2022, the first round of agricultural surveys supported empowerment via Women’s Empowerment Metric for by 50x2030 had been completed in Cambodia, Uganda, National Statistical Systems (WEMNS) at the individual- Senegal, and Georgia, with Ethiopia and Tanzania set to level in national household and farm surveys through in start. Data collection activities will start in 15 more countries collaboration with IFPRI and Emory University. in 2023. These data are collected at the individual level to understand men’s and women’s agricultural activities. The World Bank’s Gender Innovation Labs for Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, South Asia, East Asia and Pacific, and the Middle East and North Africa seek to Investing in Technical Capacity Building and identify effective interventions and policies to address Guidance to Improve Data Processing gender inequality, particularly by promoting women’s The World Bank Group is building technical capacity of economic opportunity and social empowerment. The labs NSO staff and private sector companies for closing the conduct original research and synthesize evidence for data processing gap. The World Bank Group’s StatCap decision makers in government and the private sector on projects conduct week-long statistical data analysis what does and does not work in addressing the underlying training for economists, statisticians and researchers in causes of gender inequality. NSOs on how to generate variables in order to calculate the appropriate indicators. As part of the Strengthening The World Bank Group has collaborated with Meta on Gender Statistics project, the World Bank Group team the design of the Gender Equality at Home Survey and conducts a multi-day training program on how to is currently conducting two studies based on the data use statistical software to disaggregate by sex and collected. One study investigates the link between social other characteristics and to calculate indicators using norms and empowerment-related outcomes, the other international standard definitions. assesses the biases associated with the use of this type of data in select low-income settings and the scope In the private sector, creating technical guidelines on how for correction. to tabulate indicators is essential for closing the data processing gap. While some firm-level gender data exist The International Finance Corporation’s knowledge in administrative records, sex-disaggregated indicators are products also provide ample evidence on why closing often not tabulated, reported, or publicized. When they gender gaps makes business sense and provides examples are reported, it is not always clear whether each company of effective policies and practices to address gender calculated the indicator in the same way. The International inequality in the workplace. For instance, the International Finance Corporation collaborates with its client companies Finance Corporation’s annual survey of its banking clients as needed to assist them in collecting and analyzing their has allowed for insights into the potential size and financial data and assessing gender disparities in their business performance of women-owned small and medium operations, which encompass the representation of enterprises (WSMEs), providing a business case to why women in employment, leadership roles, and board seats. financial institutions should pay greater attention to this Furthermore, the International Finance Corporation also segment (The International Finance Corporation Banking helps assess the gender imbalances of their customer base, on Women 2021). particularly in sectors such as healthcare and education, as well as their access to financial resources. 19 Finally, IFC engages in partnerships to help guide the a prerequisite for uptake and use for policy and decision private sector in collecting sex-disaggregated data that may making. Tailor-made gender data products can help ensure contribute to international reporting and benchmarking. that the right data is in the right hands at the right time. For example, as part of the Harmonized Indicators for Private Sector Operations and Joint Impact Indicators The Gender Data Portal is the World Bank Group’s (HIPSO/JII) workstream on Gender, the International comprehensive source for historical and current data Finance Corporation (among other development disaggregated by sex. It provides open access to over finance institutions) helped develop and standardize 1,000 indicators compiled from officially recognized sex-disaggregated indicators for the private sector on international sources covering demography, education, ownership and leadership, employment, and consumption. health, economic activities, assets, leadership, gender- These also align with the Impact Reporting and Investment based violence, and more. This user-centric data site brings Standards (IRIS+) system managed by the Global Impact together high-quality, curated gender statistics in an easy- Investing Network. As part of HIPSO/JILL, the definitions to-use platform with interactive visual tools and features for the standardized set of indicators allow firms to that are suitable for a wide range of audiences regardless understand which existing data are available for tabulation of their technical data knowledge. The Gender Data Portal and which data must still be collected to calculate the also features a COVID-19 Gender Data Resources page. indicator. The HIPSO-SDG Framework builds on existing The portal not only makes the Gender Statistics DataBank SDG methodologies developed by HIPSO members and available in an accessible manner but also consolidates IRIS+ to provide guidance on qualifying criteria that would international guidance on gender data collection across allow the HIPSO indicator to measure contribution to each various topics. of the relevant SDG targets. As part of the Gender Data Portal revamp in 2022, the Little Data Book on Gender was transformed into online country Investing in Data Curation and profiles that visualize key gender-related indicators across Dissemination to Ensure Access all topics, accompanied by narratives to compare each To make gender data accessible to a broad range of users, country with their corresponding World Bank Group the World Bank Group has scaled up data curation and region and income group. Each interactive, highly visual dissemination efforts. Increased visibility of gender data is 20 country profile is also supplemented by a two-page funded program, Gender Data for Policy, which is currently Country Gender Landscape, designed to aid World Bank being implemented in three Sub-Saharan African Group teams in the development of Systematic Country countries. It aims to fill analytical gaps on gender and Diagnostics (SCDs), Country Partnership Framework (CPFs), economic opportunity, build consensus on findings with and other core documents. policy makers, and influence policy reforms or investments through this work via World Bank Group development The World Bank Group maintains the Microdata policy operations (DPOs). Library featuring a comprehensive collection of open- source datasets from the World Bank Group and other Teams across the World Bank Group’s different regions international, regional, and national organizations. and sectors harness the power of gender data and analytical work to identify gaps and target them through Gender data are also featured in World Bank Group data operations. To operationalize the use of gender data in platforms focused on specific topics. Examples include its own operations, the World Bank Group has developed the Global Labor Database (GLD), which features key labor dedicated assessment mechanisms. market indicators for men and women drawing on over 1,000 nationally representative household surveys. JOIN On the World Bank side, the gender tag was introduced (Global Jobs Indicators Database) is a sub-set of country- in fiscal year 2017 to track implementation of the World level labor indicators, with sex disaggregation, compiled Bank Group Gender Strategy (FY16–23) and to measure from the GLD. The Equitable Growth, Finance and Institution quality and results of IBRD and IDA operations. Projects Practice Group maintains the TCdata360 with open data are assessed for the gender tag along three components: on trade and competitiveness. It recently developed analysis to identify the gender gap, actions for addressing Gender360, a biannually updated tool to provide users with the gender gaps identified in analysis, and indicators in an easy-to-access, comprehensive overview of country the results framework that define the outcomes expected data on women’s participation in economic activity. Jointly, through those actions. The analysis required for the gender these investments aim to facilitate analysis of women’s and tag often incorporates data from the World Bank Gender men’s socio-economic status. Data Portal or analytical work conducted by the Gender Innovation Labs and other World Bank research teams. Promoting Gender Data for Analysis, Uptake, In fiscal year 2022, out of the 429 IBRD/IDA operations and Use approved, 394 (92 percent of the portfolio) received the gender tag. Increasingly, the gender tag process, as well The World Bank Group promotes data uptake through as the learning from good practice projects and upstream its own operations and results frameworks, pushing for support, is helping task teams to identify operational entry gender data use in policy and business dialogue. More points to close gender gaps. and better data available does not necessarily lead to uptake in policy and program design. Even when the On the International Finance Corporation side, the most favorable conditions are met and data are collected gender flag is an internal tool (similar to the tag) to following international standards, processed, and curated indicate projects that integrate gender components via adequately, there is no guarantee they will be used in a theory of change that includes a gender gap analysis, a decision making. The World Bank Group continuously specific gender-related intervention, and the collection motivates key actors to use gender data to measure of sex-disaggregated indicators as part of the results progress and pinpoint challenges; guide investments, to track implementation. Through its gender-flagged programs, and reforms in countries and companies; and projects, IFC aims to integrate gender considerations underpin global advocacy to accelerate gender equality. into its investment and advisory projects, which have seen an uptake from operational teams given increased The World Bank Group systematically highlights the business case evidence and overall support architecture. relevance of gender data when setting agendas with The International Finance Corporation’s Anticipated clients. The goal is to provide decision makers with Impact Measurement and Monitoring (AIMM) framework better information on the nature and scale of the social recognizes and tracks projects that integrate gender and and economic barriers holding back women and girls inclusion impact. Proper collection and reporting on sex- and, subsequently, help inform policies and programs to disaggregated indicators by the client are required in close gender gaps and track progress on gender-related order to improve gender-related results measurements interventions. An example is the Hewlett-Foundation– and monitoring. 21 The International Finance Corporation facilitates the The data analysis and best practices from these reports are collection of sex-disaggregated employment, leadership, disseminated publicly, and also shared with a wider IFC-led and some consumer-level data at the firm level through community of practice formed by private sector companies its engagements with client companies. IFC works with (including several IFC clients), referred to as Peer Learning client companies to support them in analyzing their data Platforms (PLPs). Participating companies are required to and examining gender inequalities in their operations, with make gender-related commitments to incorporate at the enhanced business outcomes in mind. Historically, through company level to improve gender and inclusion outcomes project-level reporting requirements, IFC has collected in subsequent years. sex-disaggregated data from investment clients related to their own operations (e.g., women’s shares in employment, For example, a PLP engagement in Mexico led a participating leadership, and board composition) and their customers client to commit to disclosing sex-disaggregated data in (e.g., women’s shares in certain sectors such as health/ their annual business report and to increasing the number education and their access to finance). It also encourages of women in leadership positions as to foster a more its clients to collect sex-disaggregated data systematically inclusive workforce. In Kenya, a company that participated and regularly to measure gender gaps in their business in peer learning via the Sourcing2Equal program committed operations across various stakeholder groups (leaders, to collecting sex-disaggregated data on its suppliers and employees, entrepreneurs, consumers, and community to increase sourcing from women-owned enterprises to members) where possible. Motivating clients to report diversify its supply chain. on these sex-disaggregated data is not only beneficial for IFC also maintains an internal Gender Indicators Database, internally tracking IFC projects, but for inferring outcomes which curates data primarily from the World Bank Gender of business practices. In addition, IFC also collects gender- Data Portal and other existing public databases. It presents related data through its Sustainability Framework (of which select sex-disaggregated indicators across various thematic IFC’s Performance Standards are a part). areas relevant to the private sector, such as on access IFC also partners with private sector firms and stakeholders to technology, finance, employment across industries, to conduct research that allows for the formulation of gender-based violence, and others, which are available knowledge products, such as reports and case studies, and comparable at the country and regional levels and which document how closing gender gaps can create align with the pillars of the World Bank Group Gender markets that work for all, while also improving the business Strategy (FY16–23). The sex-disaggregated data points performance of private sector companies (see examples). in this database are incorporated by IFC project teams into project designs, strategies, Country Private Sector Diagnostics (CPSDs), briefings, and other key documents. 22 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR WORLD BANK GROUP OPERATIONAL AND ANALYTICAL WORK Moving forward, five levers are key for advancing the gender Create a more sustainable pathway for financing gender data agenda: (i) financing, (ii) research, (iii) capacity building, data initiatives from within the World Bank Group. (iv) data for operational design and policy making, and Currently, important gender data initiatives [including the (v) partnerships. SGS project, the Gender Data Portal revamp, the Living Standards Measurement Survey Plus (LSMS+) initiative, and I. Financing Measures for Advancing Gender Equality (MAGNET)] are Mobilize additional data funding through the Global Data funded through trust funds. Staff members spend significant Facility (GDF) and thoroughly mainstream gender as a time and effort soliciting trust fund resources as the bank cross-cutting theme in the GDF. With gender as one of budget does not typically go to gender data projects. its key priorities, the World Bank should work to embed More bank budget should be allocated to the non-lending gender considerations systematically into GDF efforts to agenda in addition to a greater statistics lending portfolio. ensure that there are no missed opportunities in narrowing Where possible, Country Management Units should also gender gaps and seek to catalyze more IDA/IBRD support aim to allocate funding to assessments of gender data for this agenda. availability and operations that include activities on gender data production or curation, dissemination, and use. Take advantage of Statistical Capacity Building (StatCap) operations/Data for Policy (D4P) projects to generate II. Research more and better gender data. The World Bank Group has Continue to develop and validate improved methods for established relationships with National Statistical Offices gender data production and contribute to and coordinate (NSOs) across all world regions. Building on existing efforts, the formulation of related international standards. ensure that all World Bank Group investments in national The World Bank Group as a research powerhouse is well statistical systems are gender proofed. Investments positioned to bundle efforts to make progress on key in the larger statistical infrastructure benefit gender methodological research areas to improve gender data, statistics, if complementary action is taken to ensure including how to increase use of technology and innovative that sex-disaggregated data are collected and relevant methods in data collection and exploit the potential of gender topics covered in survey efforts. To the extent that administrative data and other non-traditional sources of international standards exist, or improved survey methods data. The methodological guidance and evidence base and standards are developed over time, they should be generated from investments to the LSMS program and incorporated into World Bank Group projects with NSOs. the Gender Innovation Labs helps build the case for NSOs This can be achieved by targeted support upstream in to incorporate the “gold standard” in survey design and project design and adopting the Strengthening Gender implementation protocols. Statistics (SGS) approach to capacity development (see below). As part of the global coordination on standards, expand efforts like the Global Labor Database (GLD) and the Maintain investments in World Bank Group’s own gender- Harmonized Indicators for Private Sector Operations and relevant data sets. Enterprise surveys, Findex, and Women Joint Impact Indicators (HIPSO/JII), to harmonize sex- Business and the Law (WBL) are important primary sources disaggregated data and allow for better comparability in for gender analysis and should be continued and expanded. the private sector. Harmonization of data (and technical guidance to conduct it) will foster better gender analyses by improving cross-comparability of data at firm, market, and national levels. With harmonized data, IFC can inform its private sector strategies and operations to achieve better development outcomes. 23 Leverage World Bank expertise to develop an index of also has a community of practice that fosters country- statistical capacity on open gender data. Building on the to-country knowledge exchanges among practitioners framework developed for the Statistical Performance about effective survey design, implementation, and Index (SPI), its purpose is to move beyond other gender communication of results. While the SGS project is data assessments and pinpoint where along the data currently focused on employment, entrepreneurship, and value chain gender data gaps appear for each country. asset ownership, the approach should be adapted and Such an assessment will provide a catalyst and roadmap deployed for other thematic areas. for improving gender data collection, harmonization, and reporting and allow countries to identify areas where Provide technical training on the calculation of gender- interventions are most needed. One key component of specific indicators. Such training has the potential to this set of indicators and index is open access to microdata, significantly increase the number of indicators available against which each country would be benchmarked. and help bridge the data processing gap. For instance, in Based on the results, the World Bank can support NSOs to certain SGS partner countries, five times as many indicators uphold an open data policy, encouraging them to publicly could be tabulated and published based on existing data disseminate both the microdata and calculated indicators (World Bank 2023). via their own website or from a World Bank Group platform Build capacity to communicate and use gender data. The like the microdata library. SGS project developed guidance and training on creating III. Capacity Building gender statistics factbooks and data visualizations using free, user-friendly software and platforms that NSO staff Scale up technical capacity building for survey design and and members of various ministries could access and learn. data collection. The World Bank Group should work with The SGS approach to training should be mainstreamed data producers to adopt existing and new international in all relevant World Bank Group operations that have a standards to support data quality and comparability. On data dissemination and uptake component, especially the public sector side, the SGS project provides a blueprint D4P projects. Collaboration with country teams will be key for targeted technical assistance to NSOs and allows for for encouraging high-level dissemination of gender data consistent adoption of gender considerations in survey analyses and highlighting outputs and data on World Bank design and implementation protocols. The SGS project country websites. 24 Improve efforts to collect sex-disaggregated data Systematically track the impact of gender data on through engagements with private sector clients and governmental and business policies and programs. partners. Lack of sex-disaggregated data is a challenge The World Bank Group should leverage existing and for all sectors, as few companies know how many of their new infrastructures, for example the World Bank Data customers, suppliers, distributors, producers, and partners Governance architecture, to incorporate a gender are women. Regular collection of sex-disaggregated data component into systems that track how data analyses from is a prerequisite to knowing where gender gaps occur, World Bank Group datasets and analytical work inform key and so should be encouraged across World Bank Group decisions on policy and practice in governments and the engagements with the private sector. private sector. Such a system would facilitate the collection of use cases that document the impact and utility of gender IV. Data for Operational Design and Policymaking data for national policy and planning. This collection will Develop and promote key gender data tools to help World be essential in showing governments and businesses Bank Group task teams operationalize gender data. The why they should expand efforts to produce gender data data from the SGS project, the Gender Data Portal, and and how they can use these data in their own decision- IFC’s internal database are especially useful and needed for making processes. World Bank Group operational teams to influence portfolio V. Partnerships and project design. The World Bank Group should continue to provide learning opportunities and scale up workshops Deepen and expand partnerships across the gender with various internal and external stakeholders, particularly data ecosystem. Partnerships with other actors within country teams, to showcase how to use World Bank Group the gender data ecosystem are essential for further action key gender data tools, like the Gender Data Portal, Country both for agenda setting and to fill specific data gaps. The Gender Landscapes, SGS and LSMS guidance, GIL evidence, World Bank Group is uniquely positioned to convene as well as other Gender Group knowledge products, stakeholders, including policymakers, development to inform design, implementation, and monitoring of partners, private sector firms, research institutions, civil interventions, policies, and programs. society organizations, advocacy networks, and journalists, to build on momentum and further promote the financing, Ensure that the Gender Data Portal is adequately collection, and use of gender data. resourced and leveraged. As the most comprehensive, rigorous, and frequently updated online platform for Leverage the new Data for Purpose campaign jointly gender data worldwide, it is imperative that the World Bank launched at the 2022 World Bank Group Spring Meetings Gender Data Portal maintains its comparative advantage with UN and key partners to advance the data agenda, of and builds on its ability to attract and serve data producers which gender data is a key priority. who seek to feature and disseminate their data, content, and resources on it. To widely disseminate gender data and resulting analytical findings, the World Bank Group should leverage its internal and external partnerships to create data stories, visuals, infographics, and videos, as well as highlight data from D4P projects. Tracking the use and user experience of the Gender Data Portal will improve ease of access and facilitate its use for policy and operations. 25 RESOURCES Gender Data Gap Assessments Data Availability by Country, Topic, and Indicator (Interactive Visual Tool via WB Gender Data Portal) Data2X- Mapping Gender Data Gaps: An SDG Era Update (2020) Data2X and Open Data Watch -Bridging the Gap Studies and Region Comparison (2021) Open Data Watch - ODIN Open Gender Data Index (2020) Paris21- Assessing Data and Capacity Gaps in Gender Statistics (2019) Guidelines for Gender-sensitive Data Collection in the Economic Domain FAO, World Bank and UN Habitat Measuring Individuals’ Rights to Land: An Integrated Approach to Data Collection for SDG Indicators 1.4.2 and 5.a.1 IFI Partnership Harmonized Indicators for Private Sector Operations Joint Impact Indicators on Gender LSMS+ Overview and recommendations for improving individual-disaggregated data on asset ownership and labor outcomes LSMS Guidebook: Capturing What Matters: Essential Guidelines for Designing Household Surveys LSMS Guidebook: Employment and Own-Use Production in Household Surveys: A Practical Guide for Measuring Labor SGS How to Improve Indicators on Women’s Economic Empowerment- Guidance Note on Gender-Sensitive Survey Design and Implementation UN EDGE Measuring Entrepreneurship from a Gender Perspective: Lessons Learned from the EDGE Project UN EDGE Guidelines for Producing Statistics on Asset Ownership from a Gender Perspective 26 REFERENCES Bardasi, Elena, Kathleen Beegle, Andrew Dillon, and Pieter Durazo, Josefine; Costa, Valentina; Palacios-Lopez, Amparo; Serneels. 2011. “Do Labor Statistics Depend on How and to Whom Gaddis, Isis. 2021. 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As part of IDA18 the World Bank Group also piloted data collections in six IDA countries to gather direct respondent, intra-household level information on employment and assets. Under IDA19, the World Bank Group expanded efforts to collect gender data systematically through its operations with the help of the Strengthening Gender Statistics through IDA19 initiative. The Special Theme on Gender and Development under IDA20 solidifies the World Bank Group’s ambition to boost institutional capacity to improve data for policy decision making. The proposed policy commitment is to support 34 IDA countries, including those with ongoing statistical operations to strengthen institutions and build capacity to reduce gaps in the availability of core data for evidence-based policy making, including disaggregation by sex and disability where appropriate. It will also increase resilience of statistical systems, including through investments in digital technology and high-frequency monitoring capabilities. IFC Capital Increase Commitments IFC has made four gender-related commitments for 2030 as part of the recent capital increase package: • 50 percent share for women among directors that IFC nominates to boards of companies where it has a board seat • $2.6 billion in annual commitments to financial institutions specifically targeting women • Quadruple the amount of annual financing dedicated to women and women-led SMEs to $1.6 billion • Flag IFC projects with gender components (as applicable) by 2020 29