Building Migration Data Capacity: Examples of Good Practices for the African Region

Central Mediterranean Route Thematic Report Series, Issue No. 3

This report reviews good practices in migration data capacity-building by looking at recent efforts by international organizations to enhance the capacity of National Statistical Systems (NSS) and other national agencies to collect, manage and disseminate official statistics on migration, thereby providing a basis for sound policy and decision-making. This analysis includes examples in the West Africa region and other parts of the world. In addition to identifying some good practices aimed at enhancing data collection, analysis and management, it also looks at use of data for policy making at the national or regional level. The focus is not solely on NSS, but also on efforts to increase the capacity of policy makers to use migration-related statistics in these countries, in line with the recommendations of a recent World Bank evaluation on statistical capacity-building activities. 

The report looks at the most effective methods to increase national capacity in migration data collection, examines different types of capacity-building activities in the arena of international migration data recently carried out in specific countries, and identifies good practices and provides guidelines for future activities, particularly in the African region. The report concludes with some recommendations for future work and areas in which to enhance capacity-development in the West African region and beyond.