Annex 4: Checklist of steps and mechanisms needed for a viable and sustainable information system

Drafted by: Mr Merkur Beqiri, for facilitation of workshop discussion Working Group 1

To effectively coordinate the management of post-tsunami assistance to natural resources and livelihoods in the fields of agriculture, fisheries, forestry, coastal planning and other sectors of concern to FAO, establishment of coordinating institutions at national level is an imperative. On the other hand, the prerequisite for these institutions to be able to carry out their mandate is to have timely and accurate information made available to the right audience.

In order to have sustainable information systems that cater for smooth information gathering, flow, processing, analysis and dissemination, there are a number of conditions that need to be met and steps to be taken. Below is a check list of the steps and issues to consider while establishing an information system. This check-list needs to be adapted to match the context of a particular country and/or ministry taking into consideration available funding, resources, human resources and its capacity as well as the envisaged duration of a programme. It can be applied to an information unit established as a separate entity within an institution, or in case that is not feasible, responsibilities over the information system and functions could be assigned to people working in various departments or institutions as long as the lines of reporting and technical links are in place to enable simulation of an information unit.

Check list

1. Define the potential audience and the users of the information collected.
2. Define the stakeholders, parties that will be involved in the data collection process (e.g. FAO and a line-ministry).
3. Define the requirements for information – What is it that we need to know? Define the indicators, e.g. for:

1. Damage assessments

1. Indicators of damage

2. Project monitoring

1. Indicators of achievement

3. Impact assessments

1. Indicators of impact

4. Coordination of activities/projects

1. Indicators for coordination, depending on the activity may overlap with previous points a, b and c

5. Planning of development operations and projects

4. Review 1 and 3 to conform the budget available.
5. Define the unit of assessment i.e. Villages, camps, families, households, individuals, regional Authorities (as per admin level, see 7).

6. Define the population¹ of concern on which the information is collected.

7. Define the geographical regions where the information is going to be collected and its levels i.e. depending on the country.

1. Admin level 1
2. Admin level 2
3. Admin level 3
4. Admin level 4 …

8. Define the sample that will be surveyed or on which the information will be collected. If the population of concern is small, the sample can be equal to population, If the population is large in number than a sample methodology has to be applied according to the situation, distribution and funds available.
9. Define the time/period for which the data will be collected and time/period in which data will be collected. Data collection can be done as a one time exercise or as an ongoing process with periodical updates depending on the requirements set under 1 and 3.
10. Design the tools and methodology for the data collection and processing.

1. Guidelines
2. Forms/Questionnaires
3. Databases
4. Data sharing mechanisms (includes consensus, staff, working culture, technology such as e-mail, internet access and database support)

11. Design and agree on the formats to be used for data analysis and reporting.
12. Define and design dissemination and publishing mechanisms, channels, means and tools e.g. printing publications, web publishing, working groups, e-mail distribution and similar.
13. Get advice from the subject being surveyed on points 1 to 12 e.g. Affected population, implementing organizations, Government institutions or similar.
14. Review 1 to 13 and revise if necessary iteratively until a consensus is reached among the stakeholders.
15. Identify, recruit and allocate human resources needed to accommodate points 1 to 14.
16. Allocate and/or purchase resources other than staff required i.e. expendable and non-expendable equipment.
17. Provide training to the allocated staff prior to undertaking data collection – including occasional brain-storming sessions as required.
18. Make sure that all the resources are agreed, allocated and/or identified among the stakeholders prior to starting with data collection.
19. Design the mechanism of the information flow from bottom to top and vice versa.
20. Define and agree on the ownership of the data in each component of the information flow.
21. Assign the responsibilities of each and every staff involved as to data collection, sharing, processing, collating, analysing, disseminating and archiving.
22. Design the management and reporting model with regard to the management of the information system.

Below is a diagram of the information flow.

¹ By population here we mean the total number of the subjects being assessed, this could be total number of people but also total number of families or even organizations.