Accelerated DataProgram

Ecuador

2006 - 2015

Country Assessment

Content

I. Executive Summary ............................................................................................. 2

II. Section 1: DDI Assessment .................................................................................. 3

III. Section 2: NADA Assessment ............................................................................. 4

IV. Section 3: Status on Dissemination ..................................................................... 5

Data Access and User Management .................................................................................................................. 5

Status on the Dissemination Policy & Statistics Act ...................................................................................... 6

V. Section 4: Institutional Progress & Relation with Users .................................... 7

Estimated Budget of Documentation & Dissemination of a Survey in INEC .......................................... 7

VI. Section 5: Key Performance Indicators ............................................................... 9

VII. Section 6: Innovation & Data Revolution ......................................................... 10

VIII. Section 7: Conclusions & Recommendations ................................................... 13

IX. Section 8: Looking Forward .............................................................................. 14

X. ANNEXES ......................................................................................................... 15

Annex 1: Score by metadata category for INEC’s NADA Catalogue DDIs ........................................... 15

Annex 2: Summary of ADP implementation in ECUADOR ..................................................................... 15

Executive Summary

The Accelerated Data Program (ADP) was implemented in Ecuador through the national statistics office or the

Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INEC). The process of engaging the country began in 2010, through the Andean

Community meetings and other awareness activities, to later formally implement the program in 2011, initiating the

first documentation.

Figure 1: Timeline of the Implementation of ADP in the Country

Since its inception, the ADP funded 4 specific country interventions in direct country level support (See Annex 2). The

specific activities break down as follows:

Documentation of statistical operations at the NSO, using the DDI & Dublin Core Standards

Extending the documentation process into the National Statistical System agencies

Setting up a Central National Data Archive to disseminate metadata & anonymized microdata

The INEC has demonstrated it has great interest in moving into an electronic government and it has initiated an

ambitious plan to certify quality of the microdata and metadata produced in the National Statistics System (NSS)

included in the Code of Best Practices in the national statistical program approved by the National Statistics in 2013

based on the Statistical Production Model that the INEC is implementing. It remains at the forefront of developing

approaches to administrative records and big data. Ecuador is among the countries evaluated and ranked third mainly

because they are still in the process of implementing the new statistical production model, which includes, as a

mandatory task, the documentation of statistical projects using the DDI & Dublin Core Standards. They have a vast

coverage of statistical projects documented (129 statistical studies) that cover almost all the INEC’s statistical

production, and efforts have been made to keep expanding and improving data access and transparency as well as

expanding the DDI & Dublin Core Standards of documentation in the National Statistics System, since they were

successful in internalizing the activities that the ADP promotes.

The INEC has fully institutionalized the documentation processes and allocated the documentation process to the

design of statistical operations. The INEC estimates that they spend approximately USD 1801.67 per documented

survey of its own budget to maintain the process. The INEC is considered to be a mature country program in terms of

the documentation and dissemination process and it is able to adapt to the new data environment pro-actively. The

implementation of these activities resulted in more than 179 Surveys documented by December 2015 with over 50%

of projects having microdata available to download directly online (available on the National Data Archive - NADA).

It is also important to acknowledge the INEC’s initiative regarding new approaches to managing mobile phones data

(big data) and administrative records. Ecuador is the forth country in the region, besides Mexico, Costa Rica and

Colombia, that has, through their National Statistical Program, introduced a mandatory mandate in which the curation

process, the terminology and standard processes for generating official statistics are established to formally adopt the

National Data Archive (NADA) & the DDI/Dublin Core Standard in all Statistical Metadata production in the

• INEC joins the ADP Initiative & adopts DDI & DC Standards

2010

• Documentation of 94 statistical operations with coverage of 6 years in INEC

2011 • NADA launched with

94 projects documented.

• Regional Training Workshop on NADA 4.0

2013

• DDI Expansion Workshop for NSS agencies

2014 • DDI & DC Standard and NADA as the official dissemination tools for the NSS within INEC's Quality Certification Initiative for the NSS

2015

National Statistics System, as part of the Statistics Production Model, giving the legal basis for the program’s

sustainability.

Section 1: DDI Assessment

The DDI is a metadata standard adapted by the World Bank. It was originally intended to form a common standard

for researchers to exchange information on research projects. For this reason, the custodian of the standards remains

in large part within the ICPSR. The tools developed for the assessment evaluate the main metadata elements and are

designed to check completeness and coherence of the metadata such that a researcher would be able to capitalize on

the available information.

The main areas evaluated in the DDI Checklist are:

1. Description of the document: Key descriptive elements to define the document

2. Description of study: Overview, Coverage, Producers & Sponsors, Sampling, Data Collection, Data Processing,

Data Appraisal, Data Access.

3. Description of the data file & Variables: Content, producer, version, literal questions text, universe, variable labels

and categories, methods of derivation and imputation and confidentiality, etc.

4. External Reference Materials: Using the Dublin Core Standard is a summarized description of Questionnaires,

coding information, technical and analytical reports, interviewer manuals, data processing and analysis

software, photos, maps, etc.

5. Resources related to the study: Metadata, Citation and Use, IHSN Catalogue.

Table 1 provides a summary of the scores of the National Data Archive by July 2015 of INEC:

Table 1: DDI Assessment Summary of the NADA Catalog of the INEC – ECUADOR

RESULTS OF ECUADOR SCORE

Regional Ranking Third

Number of statistical projects in NADA 129

Average Score 67.4 %

Highest Score 93.2 %

Lowest Score 37.6%

Critical Categories Data Files; Variable; Metadata, Citation And Use; IHSN Catalog

Difficulty to Access Data 50% of projects don’t have microdata available.

Main Findings • No databases were documented in 64 projects

• The documentation is not available in PDF format

• Only 26 projects are available in the Central IHSN Catalog

For more information on the scores in a disaggregated form please refer to the Annex 1.

The INEC ranked third in the regional ranking of the assessment achieving an overall quality score of 67.4% in terms

of their published metadata. Nonetheless, there were 4 specific areas that presented issues: Data Files, Variables,

Metadata Citations and use, IHSN Catalog. The main information gaps in the documentation was found at a variable

level in each dataset, because the dissemination of certain datasets was not approved and so the documentation of

those datasets was not provided either. A similar situation applies to the description of the Datasets and Citations.

Finally, several DDIs found in the INEC’s NADA Catalog aren’t present in the Central IHSN Catalog.

Table 2: DDI Assessment Summary of NADA Catalog of the INEC – Ecuador

ADP Implementation in ECUADOR by July 2015 NSO – INEC NSS TOTAL COUNTRY

Number of Surveys Documented (Available on NADA) 129 0 129

Number of Microdata available in NADA 65 0 65

Figure 2 plots the individual scores ranked from highest to lowest. The pattern can give some indication as to the

reasons for decreasing quality. The detail can be seen below with the INEC’s review scores breakdown (See circled

grouping).

Figure 2: Assessed studies by score

(Under/Above of average score and the Minimal DDI Quality)

Section 2: NADA Assessment

The assessment of the NADA catalog site was conducted by applying a Comprehensive Review of the NADA, which

consists of 41 items grouped into 7 categories. The evaluation was conducted on specific aspects about: Configuration

and Visibility, Registration, Search and Filters, Data Dissemination Policy, Data Access, User and Citations, and

Innovations (see Annex 2). Table 3 shows the average of each of the seven categories that grouped the 41 questions

that assess the content and operation of the NADA catalog site. Because the maximum score for each category is

different, scores are expressed as a percentage of the total possible score for each category.

Table 3. Score of NADA assessment by category

NADA Category Score (%)

TOTAL SCORE 53.3%

NADA visibility 45%

NADA Registration 75%

Search and Filters 75%

Data dissemination policy

0%

Data access 100%

Metadata and Citations

0%

Innovation 0%

Days to respond 100%

67.4

75

25.0

40.0

55.0

70.0

85.0

100.0

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140

Sco

res

Studies

Score by study Average score Minimal DDI Quality

41% of the DDIs show that they

comply with the minimal

requirement to be considered high

quality documentation (above 75)

whereas 59% don’t meet this

minimal standard and the

metadata quality

needsimprovement.

This notorious gap is due to the

lack of documented datasets at a

variable level. Ecuador can

improve all documentation

published by completing the

metadata in the datasets, since this

category represents a high weight

in the DDI assessment.

53.3% 45%

75% 75%

0%

100%

0% 0%

100%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

120.0%

Ecuador: NADA assessment Score by category

The overall score achieved by the INEC’s NADA Catalog was 53.3%. The areas that presented the most problems

were Visibility of the Website for absence of a specific tab for policies and procedures as well as Contact information,

Citations and Innovation. Furthermore, since the data dissemination policy is still in the process of drafting, is not

found on the INEC’s webpage. Nonetheless, there is a Code of Best Practices available that explains, in general, the

Statistical Process Model adopted in the INEC, which reinforces the use of the NADA Catalog as the preferred

dissemination tool and formally adopts the use of the DDI and Dublin Core Standards in the metadata production of

the National Statistics System in Ecuador and promotes anonymized microdata access online, through the promotion

of an e-government. The categories in which the INEC excelled in the NADA assessment were Data Access and the

number of days to respond to a user’s request.

Section 3: Status on Dissemination

Data Access and User Management

In July 2015, the date on which the assessment of statistical projects contained in the NADA catalog from INEC of

Ecuador was conducted, there were 129 published studies, which were the subject of this assessment. It is important

to mention that the INEC Ecuador is one of the NSOs that provides microdata access to a vast number of datasets

(50%) and shares the first position with Peru in this particular category of the assessment.

Table 4: Users Statistics in Ecuador’s Central NADA Catalogue

Number of registered users (active and non-active) in NADA 985

Number of Active registered users 515 Number of deactivated users (blocked) 465 Number of Licensed Requests (total) - Number of pending licensed requests up to 24/10/2015 - Number of citations on-line - Number of surveys with data unavailable in-country but available elsewhere (DHS, MICS) 2

The NADA catalog of the INEC from Ecuador has only three types of data access: direct data access, public use files,

and no data available, while the licensed data access and data enclave types of access are not currently in use. The

Direct Data Access and the Public Use Files can be downloaded easily into an appropriate format, once the user has

completed the registration. There are other two options not in use currently, licensed data files that require users to be

registered and to fill out a data request form, accepting the terms and conditions of the Agreement to data access; if

the request is granted, the system immediately shows a confirmation message and a link is provided to access the data.

For data enclave or available via an access request at the headquarters of the INEC, the NADA catalog should show

information describing the process and the conditions under which such consultation should be carried out and

provide an email account to make the user’s specific request. Although this option is not detailed in the NADA, it is

stipulated in the mandate of the Code of Best Practices within the Statistics Production Model of the INEC – Ecuador.

Figure 3: Studies by type of data access

Overall, of the 129 studies, 50% the microdata is available and 49.6% of the microdata is not available. This is higher

than any other country in the assessment with the exception of Peru, mainly because there is a formal approach from

the INEC to have all data accessible and online in order to achieve an electronic government in the future.

Nonetheless, almost half of the datasets are not available, mainly due to the anonymization process of several datasets

that is still in process and strict transfer agreements for exchange of information, which must be fully justified.

Just recently (December 2015) a couple of datasets from the NSS became available in the NADA, since the NSS just

started the documentation process at the end of 2014. The INEC needs to sign specific agreements with each NSS

institution in order to publish their microdata, even though a Central NADA Catalog is in place and each agency has

the capacity to manage data access of its statistical projects individually. There are also other ways to access the data by

requesting a consultation or processing a query, but for confidential datasets, especially in economics, the datasets are

not documented and they are not available to download.

Status on the Dissemination Policy & Statistics Act

The dissemination policy and its Regulation has not yet been officially approved by the NSO (INEC) board of

directors. The approach that the INEC is pursuing is to have a general dissemination policy for all National Statistics

System agencies through guidelines and a Code of Best Practices that certify statistics quality, including the metadata

and data aspect, by establishing norms on standardization and harmonization. This process has been recently approved

and its implementation is being coordinated at the time of this assessment. The INEC has a unit working on the

dissemination policy, the internal regulation currently in place is the “Standard for Statistical Confidentiality and Good

Use of Information”, The INEC Resolution 1. Official Gazette 449. 02-March-2015.

Table 6: STATUS OF DISSEMINATION POLICY & STATISTICS ACT

ECUADOR NSO NSS COMENTS & PROGRESS

Statistics Act allows Microdata Access

YES YES

In December 2012, the National Assembly passed the draft Law on Statistics, which will replace the existing legal body in place since 1976. It states that the INEC’s main function is to coordinate the development of the National Policy of Statistics and the National Statistical Plan, which will be subject to the approval of CONACES (National Council of Statistics). The issue of Statistical Secrecy is maintained and the statistical information generated by public agencies will become part of the National Information System upon certification by the INEC or the Central Bank of Ecuador, according to their nature. Free access to statistical information is assured, provided it is delivered digitally. The cost of reproduction, where applicable, will be

47%

3.10%

49.60%

Percentage of studies by type of data access

Direct data access

Public use files

Data not available

regulated by the Law. In a period not exceeding 120 days from the enactment of the Act, the Executive shall issue the implementing regulation. On September 23, 2013, the National Statistical Program was approved by the National Statistics Council; instrument containing guidelines that guide the entities subject to the National Statistical System in statistical research activities in order to meet the information needs for national planning.

Is the Statistics act available on line (provide link)

NO NO Only available as the Statistics Act of 1976

Dissemination Policy allows Microdata Access

YES YES The Dissemination policy that will be approved once the Draft Law of Statistics is approved which will allow free microdata access digitally, shared at a level of National Statistics System.

Is the dissemination policy available on line? Provide link

NO NO In its place, there is only an internal regulation “Resolución Nro. 022 DIREJ-DIJU-NI–2012” that provides data access guidelines.

Regulation of Dissemination Policy includes Calendar of Publications, Type of Users, Type of Data Access per survey, NADA & DDI Standard

YES NO

In its place, there is only an internal regulation “Code of Best Practices” that provides guidelines regarding data access, but includes explicitly the DDI/Dublin Core Standard and the NADA Catalog in its recommendations.

Other channels to Microdata Access available

YES Through explicit request to the INEC headquarters.

% Data Accessible through NADA Catalog

50% 1% The dissemination policy states that all microdata disseminated must be anonymized. This process is still ongoing for most economic statistics.

Comments and Progress of Dissemination Policy (if not approved/updated)

60% 60% The INEC has completed 60% of the Dissemination Policy & the Regulation draft. For the NSS agencies, the process will start after INEC’s coordination is concluded.

Section 4: Institutional Progress & Relation with Users

In the INEC, the survey budge at the NSO includes documentation of microdata, while there is a separate process

manual for the data documentation and a specific unit monitors the data dissemination as well as the metadata quality,

which is also assigned to microdata documentation and NADA Catalogue management. Within this specialized unit,

there are staff members who have the expertise to facilitate data documentation workshops by themselves, and they

also have expertise to maintain and update the NADA Catalog independently. The INEC has staff proficient in the

use of most IT applications related to data management and Statistical Packages with the exception of Geospatial Data,

but they don’t budget for training on the use of any of these applications. There have been at least 2 international

training workshops for NSO staff members in which the INEC has participated besides one local workshops for 20

staff members from the INEC and an awareness conference for 25 staff members of the NSS agencies to introduce

and showcase the NADA Catalog.

The documentation of microdata is irregular and not scheduled at the same time as the execution of the data collection.

Nonetheless, the documentation and dissemination processes are fully institutionalized for each statistical project

within a year, since this is part of the job description of each technician involved in the process who works

permanently in the agency. Regarding user management, the INEC keeps records of the registered users and

communicates with them. The channel to get feedback from users regarding its data dissemination is done generally

through email, although the INEC has other channels to contact users. There are not, however, specific procedures to

consider user's feedback for future survey design, or improving the data dissemination system. As at September 2015,

there are 985 users registered in the NADA Catalog and, of those, 515 are active users.

Estimated Budget of Documentation & Dissemination of a Survey in INEC

Based on the INEC’s experience and time spent in the documentation and dissemination process of a standard survey,

the estimated average to document the survey is approximately USD 1,801.67. Similarly a budget pertaining to the

implementation of international standards DDI & Dublin Core in the National Statistical System (NSS) during 2016

was estimated to reach USD 131,522.26 to document 73 Statistical Operations in 28 NSS institutions. This estimation

includes IT staff for cleaning datasets; analysts to use IHSN manager tools; processing staff, validation and publication

of information and an expert in management metadata and a DDI local trainer. Specifically:

USD 5,480.14 for training provided by the INEC and installation of the Microdata Management Tools

USD 65,761.08 for monitoring and documentation accompanying

USD 55,896.96 for quality control of metadata documented

Table 7: Estimated Budget of Documentation & Dissemination of a Survey in the INEC (in USD)

INEC’s Curation Estimated Budget Yes/No Amount USD Comments

Is there a dedicated line in the NSO budget for documentation?

No

Is there a dedicated amount in each survey for documenting?

No

Are consultants hired to document the surveys using internal sources?

No

Are there dedicated personnel that document as part of their Job Description? If Yes, How many and the amount of time dedicated.

Yes 884 USD Coordination & Training for 1 week to be ready to document a survey aprox. 114 hrs.

Yes 243 USD Full time staff to document a survey for a dataset of 78 variables, aprox. 32 hrs.

Yes 332 USD Internal review of survey metadata and validate it with the head project, 40 hrs.

Yes 210 USD Publication of DDI by IT staff, 20 hrs.

Are there staff who review the DDIs? How many and time dedicated?

Yes 84 USD The ADP Coordination Unit who has full time dedication to DDIs validation 8 hrs.

How much does a survey metadata costs? 1,753 USD Total cost of documenting a 78 variable survey

Since institutionalization is one of the most important aspects to evaluate the effectiveness of the activities, a SWOT

analysis was undertaken. On balance, the INEC has fully institutionalized the activities that the ADP promotes, being

capable of ensuring ADP activities sustainability in time. The hardest part will be expanding this standard to all NSS

agencies since their statistical strength is not so developed as in INEC and the time necessary to internalize the tools

within their regular activities will be a challenge.

Figure 5: Strengths and Weaknesses of ADP institutionalization in the Country

Figure 6 indicates the Curation process that takes place in the INEC – Ecuador. A survey is documented until its

release is approved, and the documentation process is in charge of the generating areas of the data, going through two

STRENGHTS:

• The documentation process is handled internally as part of the Job Description of the staff involved.

• There's a designated Unit in charge of coordinating ADP & NADA activities in the INEC

• The documentation & dissemination activities are budgeted for each year within the INEC.

• The general level of motivation and personnel capacity is high since the internalization of the ADP has been achieved in the production areas of statistics.

• The INEC formally adopted DDI & Dublin Core and recognizes the NADA Catalog as the preferred dissemination plataform

WEAKNESSES:

•Potential overcommitment with too many new initiatives that harm the integrity of data management.

•There is no formal dissemination policy, limiting microdata access.

•There is a great deal of follow up and monitoring time that needs to be done to expand the ADP activities in the NSS sustainably.

•The excesive work load of staff members might relegate the documentation tasks.

•There are no funds for regular DDI training

OPPORTUNITIES:

• The Draft Law of Statistics will provide the legal basis to expand the DDI Standard into all the NSS agencies.

• The issue of data accesibility has become more relevant since the SDGs, giving the INEC a window of opportunity to expand the ADP activities to all NSS agencies.

• INEC Ecuador is considering requesting to be considered an OECD member and has initiated the procedures to comply with the requirements.

THREATS:

•The implemenetation of parallel metadata standards is not compliant with international guidelines.

•The addtional time needed to process external training for staff members of any NSS agency requires approval by central goverment which may be a disincentive.

•There isn't a statistical unit in each NSS agency, which complicates the ADP extension.

•The rotation of staff in different agencies forces INEC to re-train staff constantly to maintain the program.

Internalization of Metadata Management Process (Data Curation)

Sust

ain

abili

ty o

f th

e A

DP

stages of validation. The first stage of validation is conducted by the DDI supervisors within the INEC to verify

compliance with the DDI & Dublin Core Standard and a second validation by the Head of the statistical operation to

check concepts, descriptions and accuracy of the documentation. The final stage is the publication of the metadata in

the NADA Catalog the responsibility of which lies in the IT Area of the INEC.

DATA CURATION PROCESS IN INEC –�ECUADOR

DOCUMENTATION

(Generating Areas)

REVIEW & VALIDATION(DDI supervisors)

RELEASE(Head of the Survey)

PUBLICATION(IT Area)

PRO

CESS

BY

STAF

F IN

VO

LVED

IN D

OCU

MEN

TIN

G A

SU

RVEY

START

Designation of the person in charge of

documenting the survey within the generating areas of the statistical

project

Compiles or modify the documentation of the survey, datasets and reference materials

1

2

Validates the documentation using the Nesstar Publisher tools

Generates a first draft of the PDF file to check

spelling and commposition

Request the validation of the DDI supervisors of the survey, annexing a

PDF file.. The Head of the generating area validates

and submits the approved files for

dissemination.

Review, Validates and complements the

survey documentation

Is the documentation

correct?

NO

YES

Upload and/or modifies the documentation on the preproduction site of NADA and closes the

process with the project manager

Review the documentation of the

survey

Is the documentation

correct?

NO

YES

Once the metadata is approved, generate the XML and RDF files and

submit them to National Data Archive

(NADA Catalogue)

Publication of the metadata in NADA

Catalogue

Notify all areas involved in the

survey

END

DDI Supervisors train staff,

before, during and after the

documentation

Figure 6: Curation process of ADP activities in INEC – Ecuador

Section 5: Key Performance Indicators

Ultimately, the objective of the assessment is to evaluate the performance of the country based on key performance

indicators (KPIs) constructed by taking 4 dimensions into account: Metadata Quality, Relationship with Users,

Productivity and Institutional Management. Each dimension is composed of 3 KPIs, were each category is measured

with a maximum score of 8.33. After running the assessment on all four dimensions, the INEC ranked third in the

regional ranking of the quality assessment achieving an overall quality score of 77.25% in their published metadata in

their National Data Archive.

It is worth noting that metadata has a Web presence, hence, poor quality documentation and poor performance of the

National Data Archive website results in misuses of information, generating confusion and misinterpretations by the

user. For a detailed breakdown of the performance indicators scores, refer to Figure 7.

Figure 7: Key Performance Indicators: ECUADOR

Section 6: Innovation & Data Revolution

In the context of the country's statistical preparation for the post-2015 development agenda, especially for the SDGs, a

questionnaire was administered to the NSO which was composed of two parts. In the first part, each of the GSBPM

(see Figure 8) phases and sub-processes were listed and the NSOs were asked to indicate which processes posed the

most challenges to their organisation, and which were those where support from external agencies and donors is

needed. In the second part, questions were more focused on IT technologies that are considered important for the

Data Revolution, asking the NSO to indicate which specific technologies required most support.

The main purpose of this questionnaire was to gain a detailed understanding of the problems faced by countries in the

full life-cycle of statistical data (and metadata) processing. The survey is based around the processes and sub-processes

of the Generic Statistical Business Process Model (GSBPM). These processes cover the phases of design and building

surveys, and the collection, analysis and dissemination of data. The information collected from NSOs were analyzed to

see how new technological innovations, existing available software solutions and other global standards can be used to

help overcome these problems.

The comments of the INEC on each process that presents problems are detailed below:

Design:

o Design outputs: There are no specialized systems and tools to design the products to be distributed.

o Design Variable Descriptions: There is no accurate documentation that supports compliance with a

prior design of variables or indicators to be generated, since the design and the construction is done

at the same time.

5.58

3.62

4.41

4.38

6.94

2.78

Metadata Quality

Metadata Qualityabove 60

National DataArchive

Response to users

% Data Acccessible

Days Website isonline

Agents trained persurvey

Number of surveysadded last month

Total Number ofsurveys added

Institutional Index

ADP inclusion inNSO budget

Workshops organizedby NSO

0.00

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

Key Performance Indicators: ECUADOR (Each category over 8.33)

Max.Score (8.33) Ecuador

77% Average KPI

Score of Ecuador

THE BEST:

Days Website is Online

Appropriation of ADP

Organization of training

Workshops

Response to users

Agents trained per survey

Updating within a year

the NADA Catalogue

THE WORST:

- 50% of Data not accessible.

-A considerable amount of

studies don’t comply with

quality score above 60

-No regular upload of

surveys in NADA

- Institutional Index reduced

mainly due to lack of user

management

o Design Collection: New methods of data collection are not designed nor evaluated, given there is no

specialized staff for this purpose, but there is innovation in the design of the physical or digital

questionnaires or the application of new technologies of information and communication.

o Design processing and analysis: There are no specialized personnel and efficient programs for

designing a validation grid. There's lack of knowledge in the procedures that may be performed for

the imputation of information.

Build:

o Build or enhance process components: There are problems identifying the necessary improvements

to the processing components.

o Build or enhance dissemination components: There is no expertise to identify how to perform an

effective dissemination of the statistical operations information.

o Test production system: There are inconveniences in doing an effective test pilot that allows INEC

to properly test all systems that intervene in routines such as critic & coding.

o Finish production system: More training is needed for staff members regarding how to implement

the process of statistical production.

Collect:

o Set up collection: There are drawbacks in planning times for collection, in addition, training the

interviewers is not always sufficiently effective. It is important to receive assistance on how to

socialize and raise awareness in the target population effectively so the research responds to the

objectives set.

o Finalize collection: Novel methods of automatic data entry involving both typing, synchronization

and extraction.

Process:

o Classify & Code: A better use of classifications and knowing coding systems to automated entry,

enabling a reduction in the execution times of statistical operations.

o Edit and impute: Training is required to know what imputation methods of information are

accepted and valid for statistical offices.

o Finalize Datasets: How to do the dissemination controls to the final dataset, resulting from the

information processing.

Analyze:

o Interpret and explain outputs: Taking into account that INEC only does three types of information

analysis (descriptive, comparative and evolutional), it’s important to get to know other types of

analysis that can be made to processed information that serves to strengthen the statistical

operation.

o Apply disclosure controls (anonymization): Know what other control mechanism of dissemination

can be applied to the dataset under analysis, given there are different kinds of controls between the

stages of processing, analysis and dissemination. All this to avoid breaching the confidentiality of

information.

Disseminate:

o Update Output Systems: Determine which types of formats for data and metadata are more

practical and user friendly.

o Produce dissemination products: Determine how to perform proper control of compliance of the

rules of publication.

o Manage release of dissemination products: Identifying whether to generate a dissemination policy or

a microdata access or confidential data for groups of authorized users such as researchers. Is this a

sufficient instrument to ensure access, or what other types of tools would allow compliance with

this process?

o Manage User Support: Determine how to provide support to the user of statistical information,

taking into account that it is a process of policies, procedures and methods.

The INEC is capable of offering support to other countries/agencies in the region. The INEC, as coordinator of

statistics, may provide technical assistance to the entities that comprise the National Statistical System or external

producers of Statistics. With this background, the INEC has provided support in field work operatives, has played an

advisory and counselling role in pilot tests, has provided support in planning prior to collection and in construction of

sampling frames and samples.

Figure 8: The Generic Statistical Business Process Model (GSBPM)

Specify Needs

1.1 Identify needs

1.2 Consult & Confirm

needs

1.3 Establish output

objectives

1.4 Identify concepts

1.5 Check data

availability

1.6 Prepare business

case

Design

2.1 Design outputs

2.2 Design variable

descriptions

2.3 Design collection

2.4 Design frame & sample

2.5 Design processing &

analysis

2.6 Design production systems & workflow

Build

3.1 Build collection instrument

3.2 Build or enhance process

components

3.3 Build or enhance

dissemination components

3.4 Configure workflows

3.5 Test production

system

3.6 Test statistical

business process

3.7 Finalise production

system

Collect

4.1 Create

frame & select

sample

4.2 Set up

collection

4.3 Run collection

4.4 Finalise

collection

Process

5.1 Integrate data

5.2 Classify & code

5.3 Review & validate

5.4 Edit & Impute

5.5 Derive new variables

& units

5.6 Calculate weights

5.7 Calculate aggregates

5.8 Finalise data files

Analyse

6.1 Prepare

draft outputs

6.2 Validate outputs

6.3 Interpret

& explain outputs

6.4 Apply

disclosure control

6.5 Finalise outputs

Disseminate

7.1 Update output systems

7.2 Produce dissemination

products

7.3 Manage release of

dissemination products

7.4 Promote dissemination

products

7.5 Manage User support

Evaluate

8.1 Gather

evaluation inputs

8.2 Conduct

evaluation

8.3 Agree an action

plan

QUALITY MANAGEMENT /METADATA MANAGEMENT

DATA CURATION PROCESSES

Section 7: Conclusions & Recommendations

•During the metadata quality assessment, only a few gaps in documentation were identified in the following sections: sampling, data collection and data processing, mainly due to instructions on the field description not entirely accurate, or because the documentation of these elements in the metadata template isn't mandatory.

•The documentation of the data access policy is not consistent with the criteria of the assessment template in the following elements: official policies and procedures to disseminate data, structure to citation of datasets and the copyright statement, resulting in low scores in the assessment of this category.

•Documenting different time periods of the same project in differentiated studies is not exactly an error but causes the NADA Catalog to show duplicate documentation even when the conceptual design and structure of datasets has not changed over time.

•The default settings of INEC's NADA catalog don't show elements that were documented in the metadata editor, such as: Questionnaires description, geographic unit and ending date in time period.

•A recommendation is not to use the same documentation for labels and literal questions.(e.g. administrative records).

•For 64 projects, the datasets or documentation or structure of databases were omitted when it has been decided that the microdata doesn't have public access available. Even if the dataset is not available, it's metadata should be present and available in the NADA Catalog.

•42 studies were identified that do not correspond to projects of basic statistics. This leads to inconsistencies on documentation and metadata gaps because the metadata templates were created to document basic statistical projects such as Census, Surveys and administrative records data only.

Objective 1. Quality Assessment of metadata published in INEC's NADA Catalogue

•There is a Draft Law of Statistics passed on December 2012 that allows free access to statistical information, provided it is delivered digitally, and establishes the INEC’s main function which is to coordinate the development of the National Policy of Statistics and the National Statistical Plan, and was approved on Sept. 23, 2013.

•The dissemination policy and its Regulation hasn’t been officially approved by the NSO (INEC) board of directors. The internal regulation currently in place is Standard for Statistical Confidentiality and Good Use Of Information. INEC Resolution 1. Official Gazette 449. 02-March-2015.

•The dissemination policy and its Regulations should be available on the website of the National Data Archive.

Objective 2. Status on the Statistics Act and Dissemination Policy of Microdata

•During the INEC’s assessment of the National Data Archive - NADA it was evident that the Website layout is different in relation to other NADAs from other regions, since it lacked content on some sections that should be present such as: mission and purposes, citations, policies and procedures, innovations and contacts, causing low scores on the NADA assessment.

•The NADA Catalog will render greater benefits when it is formalized as the preferred method of dissemination for the National Statistics System, even though it is already working for INEC as an official institutional internal regulation.

•50% of the microdata is accessible through the NADA Catalog. This score is considerably high in relation to other countries, although for the other 50% there is no data access or the anonymization of datasets is still in progress.

•The inclusion of a new category of "other access to data" in the classification of Data Access is necessary in the next version of the NADA Catalog, since the data access types available don't reflect all form of access to data in INEC.

Objective 3. Assessment of the funtionality of NADA Catalogue and quality of the service to microdata users.

•Sustainability of the activities of ADP is assured as it depends on three fundamental aspects that INEC has successfully implemented:

•a) The inclusion of the tasks of documentation and dissemination within the job description of the staff and the budget of the institution.

•b) A plan of internal training in the use of Microdata IHSN tools managed by the INEC's training area as demanded based on the presentations and tools provided by the ADP. There is no funding for more external trainings in INEC, although there is an individual training budget for each staff member.

•c) INEC has initiated an awareness conferences with NNS agencies and users to showcase the NADA. It's important to expand the outreach activities between users and producers to establish a relationship and take into account the user's feedback to improve survey design and outputs.

Objective 4. ADP activities sustainability and User engagement

Section 8: Looking Forward

In an effort to consider the NSO’s needs in setting priorities for the PARIS21 Agenda post-2015, each country was

asked to fill out a form stating the priority of 15 products that PARIS21 is considering to develop.

The results for the INEC are presented in Figure 9, where SDMX and Innovation & Data Visualization take the first

place, followed by NSDS Data Module & SDGs, Harmonization of Data of different sources, Dissemination Policy

Design and User Management, Data Curation Manuals and Big Data. By offering assistance in the first 3 topics, 63%

of Ecuador’s demand would be covered.

Figure 9: ECUADOR's Prioritization of PARIS21 Activities

Accounting for the country’s expressed needs in the survey drafted by the ‘Informing a Data Revolution Initiative’, the

main areas where specific technical needs were identified are Big Data sources, techniques and guidelines through a

regional Sandbox supported by UNECE Sandbox, to grant INEC the availability of tools and methods to produce

Official Statistics from Big Data sources. The INEC is currently developing a process map, while it is conducting a

comprehensive study of administrative reorganization, which will conclude in 2016.

30%

17% 17% 14% 11% 11%

46%

63%

77%

89%

100%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

Innovation Inventory,Data Visualization,Nodal Analysis forData Production &Portal management,

SDMX

NSDS Data Module &SDGs

Harmonizing Data Dissemination Policy,Managin Users & Data

Use

Data Curation Manual& Statistical Revisions

Big Data & MobilePhones Data

ECUADOR's PRIORITIZATION OF PARIS21 ACTIVITIES

% PRIORITY BY TOPIC % PRIORITY BY TOPIC ACCUMULATED

ANNEXES

Annex 1: Score by metadata category for INEC’s NADA Catalogue DDIs

Category Score (%) Main comment for improvement

IDENTIFICATION 97.5

The reference year should not appear in the subtitle

VERSION 76.6

It is suggested that the filling condition to document version of data files changes to mandatory

OVERVIEW 98.3

Avoid documentation that does not contribute to the understanding or use of data

COVERAGE 100

It is necessary to modify the filling instructions to clearly establish differences between coverage and geographical unit

PRODUCERS AND SPONSORS 100

-

SAMPLING

86.1

It is necessary to modify the filling instructions to clearly establish criteria for targeted sampling and sampling frame for administrative records data

DATA COLLECTION

60.9

It is necessary to modify the filling instructions to document information about pilot testing, conformation of enumeration team and conceptual basis for data collection formats

DATA PROCESSING 82.5

It is necessary to modify the filling instructions to document information about kind of data entry and software used to edit data.

DATA APPRAISAL 96.9

-

DATA ACCESS

76.7

It is necessary to modify the filling instructions to document better information about data access policies, format to citations and copyright statements

DATA FILES 43.6

Incorporate and document the structure of the database, even if the files are not available for download

VARIABLE 42.0

Incorporate and document the structure of the database, even if the files are not available for download

EXTERNAL RESOURCES 1 95.3 The labels should be clear and precise, avoiding duplicate

documentation of literal questions and labels.

EXTERNAL RESOURCES 2 91.0 Questionnaires must be integrated in all projects

METADATA, CITATION AND USE 50.2 Verify that the links of external repositories for downloading files

work properly. Favoring downloading in PDF format.

IHSN CATALOG 50.4 Ensure that the version of the NADA allows download

documentation in PDF and XML.

Annex 2: Summary of ADP implementation in ECUADOR

ADP implementation in ECUADOR up to July/2015 NSO – INEC

NSS – SEN TOTAL

COUNTRY

Year ADP Started 2010 2014 2008 - 2015

Number ADP interventions in the Country 3 1 4

Metadata Production Workshops 1 1 2

National Data Archive (NADA) 1 0 1

User Outreach Workshops 0 0 0

Regional Workshops 1 0 1

Number of Institutions Trained in Data Documentation 1 12 13

Number of Institutions attending User Outreach Workshops 0 0 0

Number of persons attending ADP training events 20 56 76

Number of women trained in documentation 32

Number of Surveys Documented (Available on NADA) 129 0 129

Number of Microdata available in NADA 65 0 65

Average score: 67.4%

wwww.ecuadorencifras.gob.ec

www.PARIS21.org

www.adp.ihsn.org