CCSA Special session on showcasing big data

1 October 2015, Bangkok

Big data and official statistics – the role of the ICT sector

Susan Teltscher

Head, ICT Data and Statistics Division International Telecommunication Union

1 October 2015

Overview

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Big data and the ICT sector

Trends in ICT access and use

ITU’s engagement

Mobile operator data use cases

Big data and the ICT sector Why important

Amount of data generated as a result of the spread of ICTs

ICT sector is a major source of big data

Access to mobile communication services is nearly ubiquitous

Mobile devices allow collection of new data (on all types of information)

Gaps in official (ICT) statistics and timeliness of data – potential of alternative data sources

Global ICT developments Key indicators

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Mobile revolution Unprecedented growth in developing countries

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Total number of mobile-cellular subscriptions is close to total world population

Source: ITU WTI Database

* Estimate

2000

Total 719 million

Developed

Developing

2005

Developing Developed

Total 2.21 billion

Mobile revolution Across all regions

Source: ITU

* Estimate

Mobile penetration by region, 2015* (number of mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants)

Mobile revolution Around 95% of the population is covered by a mobile network…

… and mobile broadband coverage is expanding rapidly

Source: ITU WTI Database

* Estimate

Internet uptake 2/3 of Internet users are in the developing world

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43% of the global population is using the Internet

But: 90% of those not yet online are in the developing world - mobile broadband growth is key

Telecommunication service providers

Internet and mobile content providers

Fixed operators

Mobile operators Internet service providers (ISPs)

Over-the-top service providers (OTTs) Social network providers

Mobile apps market/providers

Others

Software providers Content distribution network (CDN)

providers Equipment providers

ICT sector big data sources Potential partners in official statistics

ITU’s engagement Raising awareness and facilitating the dialogue

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UN agency for telecom/ICT

>700 ITU private sector members, including many telecommunication operators and satellite companies

Measuring the Information Society Report 2014 and 2015

Forum for discussion with member states: WTIS 2013, 2014, 2015 and two statistical expert groups

ITU Big Data Strategy developed in 2014

GWG on Big Data for Official Statistics

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1. Advocacy and Communication 2. Linking Big Data and SDGs 3. Access and Partnerships 4. Training, Skills and Capacity Building 5. Cross-cutting Issues 6. Mobile Phone Data 7. Satellite Imagery 8. Social Media Data

UN Global Working Group (GWG) on Big Data for Official Statistics : ITU is a member of all 8 GWG Task Teams

GWG on Big Data for Official Statistics Task Team on Access and Partnerships

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Access to big data is one of the core issues related to big data usage in statistical offices

Some data are available on the web, others are proprietory (companies) – need to develop new public-private partnerships

GWG Task Team: Development of set of principles for data access

Development of model data sharing agreement based on existing agreements and best practice

Topic of discussion during WTIS 2015

Examples of use of big data from mobile telecommunications

Industry/internal use

For monitoring and policy making (across

sectors)

Customer profiling

Network planning and management Development of new business lines

Urban and transport planning Disaster management

Migration and population tracking Prediction of disease outbreaks and spread

Socio-economic analyses

For monitoring information society

developments

ICT usage behaviour and patterns Information on users

Network speed and quality Population and geographical dimensions of

digital divide

Use of big data from mobile operators Selected examples

Map of 11 regions showing

Multidimensional Poverty

Index

Poverty map of 11 regions

estimated based on data

from antennas

Based on official statistics Model based on

mobile operators data

Source: Smith C,, Mashadi A,, and Capra L (2013).

Poverty mapping in Cote d’Ivoire

Tracking population displacements after 2010 Haiti earthquake

Source: Bengtsson et al., 2011

Transportation and urban planning in Colombo, Sri Lanka

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Using mobile data Official survey data

Source: Lokanathan et al. (2014)

Big data from mobile telecommunications The case of Ebola

Tracking location of calls to helpline

Tracking population movements

Tracking spread of disease

Source: BBC News 14 October 2014

ITU Ebola project The case of Sierra Leone

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Use of ICT in health-related emergencies ( see ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2014, Resolution 202)

Analysis of call detail records (CDRs) to monitor geographical movement of individuals

Applications: epidemic outbreaks; emergency response and evacuation; others

Cooperation between ITU, Government and operators

Operators will anonymize data before analysis

Timeframe: February 2015 – August 2016

Big data from the ICT sector Development potential and challenges

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Development potential Challenges

Rich source for big data, real-time and low-cost

Data from mobile operators are available in developing countries

Reveal new insights across sectors helping policy makers

The use of alternative data sources may have bigger impact – «statistical leapfrogging»?

Data access

Privacy and data protection

Storing and analysing data; required skills

Veracity (quality, representativeness, interpretation of results)

Public-private partnerships Cooperation among different stakeholders Proof-of-concept studies to be scaled up

Thank you

For more information and data: www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/statistics