In its effort to improve public service delivery and transparency in governance, Lagos State government has charged its data collection managers on the effective use of its recently innovated Eko360 project, a technology-driven data collection system. The Project which attracted support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation engaged the Data Science Nigeria (DSN).
This charge was made at the weekend during a two-day workshop for Data Managers in the Health sectors, a synergy with Lagos Bureau of Statistics on the use of Eko360 app data collection, organised by the State Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget at the Protea Hotel, Central Business District, Ikeja.
The workshop, which also engaged Statisticians/Statistical Officer cadres, Education data managers, would also extend to other related offices in Ministries, Departments, Agencies (MDAs).
According to the Economic Planning and Budget Commissioner, Mr. Sam Egube, the workspace with the health data managers is to help keep up with the latest trend in medical methods, protocols, terminologies and specifications for the collection, exchange, storage and retrieval of information related with health care applications.
Egube said, “This engagement is meant to harness a “Data Standard”. In the context of health care, the term data standards encompasses methods, protocols, terminologies, and specifications for the collection, exchange, storage, and retrieval of information associated with health care applications, including medical records, medications, radiological images, payments and reimbursement, medical infrastructural devices and monitoring systems, and administrative processes.
“Lagos State government in its effort to ensure public service improvement, efficiency in governance, transparency, innovation and economic value addition had adopted Open Data Initiative as a support to its open governance framework.
“This is clear in the implementation of two major projects; the first being the Digital Cabinet Project which is meant to provide an open view of evaluation of government projects and programmes in government, classified by the six pillars of the THEMES Agenda. The second, which is a feeder of the first is the Lagos Bureau of Statistics driven Eko360 Open Data Project being supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation who had engaged our technical partners, the Data Science Nigeria (DSN).”
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget represented by the Assistant Director (Statistics), Mrs. Pemede Senami Bolanle, said the State was relying on the expertise of the data managers in building support and consensus required for delivering on the reform that has become necessary for Data Management System in the face of the current global circumstances, where Circular Economy is one of the main focus for survival.
The Director, Policy, Planning, Research and Statistics, Ministry of Education, Dr. Olufunmi Oyetola said, the demonstration for the usage of the Eko360 data collection app as a complementary tool to achieve accurate and timely submission of information by the Education Sector data collection officers to the Lagos Bureau of Statistics was needed for the process of collecting administrative data.
