Call for national researchers for the Global Data Barometer – Asia Region

Open Data for Development Asia Hub (D4DAsia) is currently seeking independent, country-level researchers (individual or institution) for the following 14 countries:

Indonesia; Philippines; Singapore; Cambodia; Lao PDR; Myanmar; Thailand; Vietnam; Sri Lanka; India; Nepal; Bangladesh; Taiwan; and Japan.

Selected researchers will act as national researchers for the first edition of the Global Data Barometer (2020–2021). D4DAsia acts as a Regional Hub for the Global Data Barometer project and is responsible for the following countries in Asia: Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Taiwan and Japan. This call is open both for individual researchers as well as independent civil society and research organisations from the above-noted 14 countries.

The Global Data Barometer is a new study of data for the public good that builds on the foundation of the Open Data Barometer. Learn more about the Global Data Barometer project here. The pilot edition of the Global Data Barometer receives core funding from Canada’s International Development Research Center under grant 109517-001 as part of the Data for Development program of work.

Potential researchers, whether individuals or organisations, should have experience in one or more of the following fields: open data; open government data; data for public good; the use of data for monitoring or evaluating public service delivery; training or capacity-building around the use of data; the use of data to create socially valuable applications; or promoting the use of data among governments, CSOs, private sector, the developers community, or in investigative journalism.

The selected researcher will be responsible for completing a detailed expert survey that looks at policies, practices, datasets, and research related to the governance, capability, availability, and use of data in their respective country. Responses will be peer reviewed, with researchers asked to respond to reviewers’ feedback and update responses as appropriate.

Applicants should be well-known and credible in their respective country, recognised for their independent work, and without government/political affiliation.

Additional Requirements:

National researchers must:

• • Have a high standard of written English and English comprehension;
  • Be fluent in the language of one or more of the main administrative languages of the country they are researching;
  • Have in-depth knowledge of the country they are researching, including knowledge of recent policy developments;
  • Have relevant knowledge and understanding of data protection, data policy, open data, and data sharing; and
  • Have relevant contacts and networks to draw upon.

Country researchers may not:

• • Be a government official or employee, or a contractor deriving a substantial proportion of their income from the government; or
  • Have any conflicts of interest that would affect their ability to provide impartial assessments.

Duties include:

• • Read the research handbook;
  • Participate in an online researcher-training session;
  • Carry out primary desk research to locate evidence in relation to each question;
  • Use guidance from the research handbook to assess the evidence and respond to scoring scales or yes/no assessment questions;
  • Write in clear English a prose justification of any assessments, listing sources used;
  • Submit the completed survey within 6 weeks of it being allocated; and
  • Respond promptly to any reviewer comments.

The process will involve desk research, and may involve carrying out key informant interviews. We anticipate this taking up to 20 days of effort (depending on the specific country and the researcher’s experience) over a 1.5 month period during March – June 2021. Researchers may be invited to be involved in regional dissemination activities which are anticipated to take place after June 2021. This is optional and may include writing a country summary for a regional report, or taking part in regional dissemination webinars. 

Applicants are asked to submit a covering letter with the below details and a CV via email to recruitment@opendevmekong.net. The deadline for submission has been extended to February 28, 2021. The interview phase is anticipated to take place March 1-8, 2021. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

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General details:

• • Name:
  • Contact details:
  • Where are you currently based:

              [ ] I am interested in being a country researcher for the following country: 

              [ ] I confirm I am neither employed nor primarily funded by the government of this country, and I have no conflicts of interest that would prevent me from being an independent researcher.

• • Please briefly describe your connection to, or knowledge of, data issues in this country:

           For example: Do you live in this country? Are you fluent in key national languages? How are you connected to this country’s data policy issues?

• • Please rate your knowledge in relation to the following topics:

• • Please briefly describe your relevant qualifications, for example, you might list your highest degree or training and/or prior research experience.
  • If applying as an organisation, share in brief how this assignment might be connected to the organisation’s strategy and ongoing activities.
  • Honorarium

            Our current budget will allow us to offer an honorarium of approximately US$1500 for the 10-20 days of effort researchers will undertake. 

• • We recognise that:
    • Some people/Organizations will be able to undertake research as part of their existing work, and will not need or be able to claim this honorarium.
    • Some people/Organizations may not be able to act as researchers without a top-up to this honorarium because of their financial situation.

• •  If selected as a researcher:

              [ ] I/We do not intend to claim the $1500 honorarium

              [ ] I /We intend to claim the $1500 honorarium