Why Myanmar Needs Data Collaboration
Data, in it’s digital form, is a relatively new concept for Myanmar. Outside of the country, researchers have been grappling with the onslaught of digital information and ruminating on how to democratize and leverage it for the good of society. One result of this is the Open Data movement, making public information open and accessible to the general public, but more recently, other initiatives have been created to apply that data more directly to already pressing problems. Myanmar’s Open Development Platform and other similar initiatives have done a great job of making public data available for researchers and we want to carry this momentum forward by finding exactly where useful data is located and make it, and the necessary technical resources, available to those that can create change.
Phandeeyar occupies a unique space in the Myanmar technology ecosystem through years of working with NGOs and CSOs as well as members from the private sector. We are proud to have built relationships across Myanmar with those working on problems that they care about dearly. With that position in the community, we believe that we can do more to foster exchange with the data match-making program. Our plan is to create a program modeled from similar initiatives from around the world, building on their insights. We will partner with private and public data holders and find organizations that have a specific goal in mind and provide technical support to produce a tangible product with the data and expertise.