SIAPS was a co-organizer of the International Conference on Data for Decision (D4D) in Health in Dhaka, Bangladesh, hosted by the country’s Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). The conference, which took place April 1–3, 2017, laid out priority actions and targets to strengthen country data and accountability systems. WHO and USAID also co-organized the event, along with other global health groups.
The conference highlighted global and regional progress to date in strengthening health management information systems while increasing the level and efficiency of investments, strengthening institutional capacity to use data for decision making, and enhancing accountability and management systems. It was a follow-up to a regional conference on “Measurement and Accountability for Health (MA4H)” April 26–28, 2016.
In his welcoming speech, Mohammed Nasim, MP and Minister of Health and Family Welfare for Bangladesh, expressed hope that the conference would make “a significant contribution in terms of knowledge sharing and experience gathering […] to establish stronger national capacity […] to better respond to their national health needs.”
Zahedul Islam, CPD, SIAPS country project director, co-chaired a session on data visualization. Mohammad Golam Kibria, senior technical advisor for SIAPS, spoke on creating a culture that fosters data use for decision making and led a skill-building session in using Excel for visual analytics. SIAPS was also present at the D4D Market place with a booth featuring different health information system tools supported by the program and showcasing the country-specific results. Approximately 200 people attended the event, including government representatives from neighboring countries. It culminated in a field visit to Dhaka and neighboring districts. Read more in The Daily Star, and see the related publication, HIS Revolution in Bangladesh A Journey from Data to Decision.
