Data collection and analysis tools for food security and nutrition

 et al., 
2017; Headey 
et al.
, 2020), we do not know its true impact on 
the affordability of food or on FSN outcomes 
due to the lack of up-to-date data. The 
continued effects on FSN of COVID-19 and of 
ongoing conflicts will also go insufficiently 
quantified and understood. These data gaps 
impede the development of effective policy and 
programmatic responses to address increasing 
hunger and malnutrition. Indeed, in the face of 
the failure of food systems and with less than a 
decade to go until 2030, the achievement of most 
of the SDGs is dependent on a radical and urgent 
transformation of food systems (HLPE, 2020). 
But resources and time are scarce, and there are 
many competing priorities and trade-offs to be 
considered. In light of these considerations, 
data 
must be at the centre to diagnose and inform the 
food system transformations so urgently needed 
for FSN and for the planet.
True progress towards enhanced data utilization 
for FSN will require bold, concerted action and 
the achievement of these five fundamental shifts 
in the way in which data and information are 
used:
CREATE GREATER 
DEMAND FOR DATA FOR 
DECISION-MAKING AMONG 
GOVERNMENTS, POLICY 
MAKERS AND DONORS
Demand for data for decision-making is a 
prerequisite for achieving more and better 
investments and more effective data utilization. 
But many political, economic and other 
considerations are brought to bear on policy 
and programmatic decisions, so that data may 
not always be a high priority. Data transparency 
and clear national data strategies
36
are vital 
to ensure that actionable data are available 
to policymakers when they need them, and in 
forms that facilitate their utilization. Another 
way to enhance data utilization is to illustrate 
the potential economic implications of not 
using data. Surprisingly however, few studies 
have quantified the economic cost to countries 
of policy and program measures that were not 
adequately informed by data. This must change.
Supporting demand for data can be facilitated 
by a framework for aligning and coordinating 
assistance from international organizations and 
donors.
To this effect, we recommend that:
•
the UN System provide guidance that lays 
out 
good practices for priority setting
guided 
by frameworks for data decision-making; and 
develop practical guidelines on data-informed 
ex-ante and ex-post policy evaluation in the FSN 
domain for national-level policymakers and 
administration;
•
organizations in the UN System and national 
and international academic institutions 
develop and promote the use of 
e-learning 
and continuing education courses in data 
prioritization and utilization
for policymakers;
•
donors, supported by international 
organizations and academia, develop and use 
costing and cost-benefit analysis to assist 
policymakers to 
estimate the cost trade-offs 
of decision-making using data
from varying 
sources;
— the World Bank, in its efforts to estimate 
the cost of nutrition-specific and nutrition-
sensitive actions to achieve the SDG2 targets, 
also estimate the costs of decisions and 
actions that are not informed by up-to-
date, accurate data on the FSN situation in 
countries, and estimate the savings that may 
be accrued by acting on better data;
•
governments (via their ministries and agencies, 
including statistics offices) as well as private 
sector agents, international organizations and 
research institutions, 
complete a data-informed 
decision-making process matrix for FSN each 
time they are requested to address a specific 
challenge
;
36 See Section 5.5.3 of the report.

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104 
]
DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS TOOLS FOR FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION
•
for all FSN-related legislation and policy 
proposals, the responsible government authority 
include a 
detailed data annex
, presenting 
available data sources and the analytic tools 
intended to be used for their treatment;
•
governments encourage empirical analysis 
of existing FSN microdata in administration, 
statistics institutes, agencies and universities; 
promote the hiring of statisticians, data 
scientists and experts in the analysis of 
qualitative FSN data; and 
create an annual 
forum for data-informed discussion on 
national FSN policies
.
OPTIMIZE AND, IF NEEDED, 
REPURPOSE CURRENT 
DATA-RELATED 
INVESTMENTS, WHILE 
INCREASING COLLABORATION 
BETWEEN INTERNATIONAL 
ORGANIZATIONS, 
GOVERNMENTS, CIVIL 
SOCIETY, ACADEMIA AND 
THE PRIVATE SECTOR, TO 
HARMONIZE AND MAXIMIZE 
THE SHARING OF EXISTING 
FSN DATA
While additional investment in generating data 
is certainly needed, much can be accomplished 
through better use of existing data-related 
resources and by reinforcing the role of 
international organizations as producers of 
official FSN data as public goods.
The cost of surveys and all data collection 
efforts can be substantially reduced by being 
selective in what data to collect. It is therefore 
crucial to plan how data will be used