Empowering Youth and Communities through Citizen Data for Sustainable Development

This side event is co-hosted by the Collaborative on Citizen Data, and the National Statistics Offices of Italy and Nepal
This event is jointly organized by the Collaborative / ImPACT Coalition on Citizen Data and its member organisations, and supported by the statistics offices of Nepal and Italy. In this event, we will explore the transformative potential of youth-led citizen data in driving sustainable development and enhancing participatory governance.
In this context, the event will bring together young data enthusiasts, youth community leaders, policymakers, national statistical offices and development partners to discuss successful case studies, methodological advancements, and the ethical considerations of producing and using citizen data. Participants will learn how to harness this powerful tool to inform decision-making, track progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and ensure that the voices of marginalized and underrepresented populations, especially youth, are included in the development agenda.
Through interactive discussions, the event aims to foster innovative partnerships and strategies for scaling youth-driven citizen data initiatives globally, in line with our ImPACT coalition’s key asks of UN member states:
- Create collaboration mechanisms with civil society to enable the sustainable and accountable production & use of Citizen Data, including for official purposes
- Support citizens to sufficiently engage in data production and use for evidence-informed decision-making
- Make use of Citizen Data as complementary data source in monitoring and planning, thereby ensuring that no one is left behind
- Support capacity strengthening of both civil society & govt agencies to foster accountability and inclusion
- Ensure that citizen data are used to the fullest extent in existing reporting mechanisms, and also in the context of monitoring the implementation of the commitments made in the Pact for the Future
- Ensure usability, openness and accessibility of official data, while ensuring safeguarding privacy and security, towards enhanced data usability and transparency.