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The Data- Quantitative

Equilo draws from a robust set of hundreds of existing, publicly available quantitative GESI-specific data sources. We harness big data and the power of technology to instantly translate an ocean of data for users to quickly understand what matters. 

 

Equilo aggregates, synthesizes, and analyzes this big data. This work is typically performed manually by gender specialists and significantly reduces the amount of work you need to do. No other platform currently exists that provides this service, instantly.

 

Equilo gives users with a range of backgrounds and GESI knowledge the power to quickly identify gender equality strengths and challenges, contextualizing that information and offering relevant What Works tips to begin addressing identified gaps and opportunities.

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Equilo's Analytical Framework

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Equilo adopts the Transforming Agency, Access, and Power (TAAP) analytical framework, which encompasses six key domains: 

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  • Access to and Control over Assets and Resources

  • Human Dignity, Safety, and Wellness

  • Knowledge, Beliefs and Perceptions, Cultural Norms

  • Laws, Policies, Regulations, and Institutional Practices

  • Power and Decision-Making

  • Roles, Responsibilities, Participation, and Time Use

 

Across these TAAP domains, specific themes that represent key areas for gender equality and social inclusion analysis were identified. These include:

  • Education & Literacy 

  • Entrepreneurship

  • Financial Inclusion

  • Gender-Based Violence

  • HIV

  • Information & Communication Technology

  • Land & Property Ownership

  • Nutrition & Food Security

  • Personal Agency

  • Political Participation & Leadership

  • Poverty

  • Sexual & Reproductive Health

  • Trafficking in Persons

  • Unpaid Care Work

  • Workforce Participation

These 15 themes cut across two or more of the domains, resulting in 32 unique TAAP domain/theme intersections for analysis and scoring. For example, the Workforce Participation theme intersects with four TAAP domains (Knowledge & Beliefs, Roles & Responsibilities, Power & Decision-Making, and Law & Policy), while the Political Participation theme intersects with two TAAP domains (Knowledge & Beliefs and Power & Decision-Making).

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The spider web on the landing page depicts the six TAAP domains and 15 interspersed themes. Some themes appear in multiple TAAP domains because a unique score is calculated for each specific TAAP domain/theme intersection. The purpose of this is to analyze the “hot spots” of strengths and weaknesses across one theme and illustrate potentially uneven progress. For example, a country may have strong laws and policies on gender-based violence (GBV), resulting in a high score within the Law & Policy domain, but there may be widespread social acceptance of GBV, resulting in a low score within the Knowledge & Beliefs domain.

 

Equilo users can view the full methodology for the GESI Contextual Analysis tool from their Equilo dashboard.

Primary Quantitative Data Sources

Equilo draws upon hundreds of internationally validated and open source databases and reports to populate data in the GESI Contextual Analysis, Global Analysis, and GBV Risk Score tools. 

 

These include:

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Equilo's primary goal with data is to provide users with a robust understanding of gender equality and social inclusion within one country, rather than compare data across countries, although comparisons are available throughout the tools.

 

Thus, our tools also draw upon thousands of alternative or proxy data sources to fill in missing values when data is unavailable through the main databases we use. Alternative data sources account for approximately 8.2% of our total dataset.

 

All data points are cited within the dashboard to ensure transparency and to allow the user to locate and explore the original data source.

To ensure the reliability of the data, Equilo first chooses data from internationally validated and standardized sources, then from reputable and reliable institutions and research organizations with credible sampling and research methodology, and as a last result Equilo uses data from national statistical offices.

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Equilo provides users with a confidence score to signal a lower score when data for a specific country and indicator is not from an internationally validated and standardized source.

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Equilo’s first choice for data are internationally validated and open source databases. However, many of these databases do not include data for all of the 132 low- and middle-income countries included in the Equilo's tool.

 

To address this limitation, Equilo uses alternative sources or proxies to fill in data gaps. Equilo's team of researchers and data scientists conduct this research manually where there gaps in standardized data sets.

 

Alternative data sources account for approximately 8.2% of Equilo's total dataset; more specifically, 0.6% of the total dataset is sourced directly from the websites of national statistical offices or government ministries. However, this figure does not account for the fact that national statistical offices also produce much of the data in our preferred data sources, with technical support from international organizations to ensure alignment with data standards. 

How Equilo Validates Data Sources and Communicates Reliability to Users 

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Equilo always uses internationally validated and standardized sources as it is first choice, but does include alternative data sources and proxies where that data is unavailable for specific countries and indicators. The use of alternative sources may produce a less reliable or comparable analysis than the internationally standardized sources. Alternative sources may not comply with internationally established gender data standards due to budgetary limitations, low staff capacity, perceived lack of relevance, or other constraints.

 

To mitigate this, Equilo chooses to still use alternative sources and proxies, but provides users with two scores to understand when data may be less reliable in specific instances: a Power and Confidence Score.​

The Confidence Score measures the reliability of the Gender Equality Score on a scale of 0-1. A higher Confidence Score indicates greater data quality (i.e., data from internationally standardized sources, collected within the last ten years) and comparability across countries.

 

For example, if 3 out of the total 9 indicator values within Access to Resources/Education & Literacy are sourced from a preferred, internationally validated database (e.g., UNESCO UIS.Stat) and have been collected within the past decade, that country would receive a Confidence Score of 33%, reflecting low confidence in the overall data quality. 

The Power Score measures the robustness of the Gender Equality Score on a scale of 0-1. A higher Power Score indicates greater data availability, including data from any year sourced from both internationally standardized and alternative sources.

 

For example, if 3 out of the 9 indicator values in Access to Resources/Education & Literacy are sourced from an internationally validated database, 5 indicator values are drawn from alternative sources, and 1 is missing with no alternative data source, that country would receive a Power Score for that specific TAAP/ theme gender equality score of (3 + 5) / 9, or 89%.

Equilo's team of researchers and data scientists monitors when our principal data sources are refreshed, actively searches for alternative data sources when principal data sources for countries is missing, and also continuously reviews possible new data sources and indicators for inclusion in Equilo.

 

Principal data sources are often updated on an annual basis. When updated data becomes available, it is imported immediately into our master database and the user dashboard is updated accordingly. Other updates happen on a daily basis, such as identifying a new source for an indicator that is missing for a country or adding a new indicator. Equilo's objective is to continue making the analysis as robust as possible on an ongoing basis as more and better data become available.

 

Therefore, the model and analysis are dynamic and current. Users will always have the latest and freshest data and analysis available. Therefore, the scores and top areas for improvement for one country might be different when logging in three months from now compared to what was accessed today.

Frequency of Equilo's Data Fresh and Updates

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Share your new indicators and databases!

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Equilo has built a fluid and dynamic framework that can be continuously updated. To date, researchers and data scientists at Equilo have reviewed dozens of quantitative data sources to select the most valid, high-quality indicators and data to power Equilo's analysis.

 

However, data availability is constantly changing, the Equilo team welcomes suggestions to add indicators. If you have a data set you or indicator that you believe Equilo should consider including, please contact us using the form here or email us at hello@equilo.io. 

Equilo's Use of Predictive Modeling 

Equilo's architecture has laid the foundation for advanced analytics using big data and artificial intelligence. Equilo is built on foundational logic and relationships between hundreds of thousands of data points and many different data types.

 

This provides the opportunity to conduct advanced analytics and add additional value to GESI analysis and subscribers. The following functionality currently being expanded throughout 2021: 

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  • Strengthen robust analysis of relationships across social and business dimensions, identifying correlations and causations

  • Improve ability to prioritize recommendations to close gaps based on a specific country's GESI challenges and impact predicted (e.g. Equilo will identify a specific action as more impactful and/or efficient than another potential action, based on the analysis)

  • Predict the future of gender equality in countries and sectors based on the current status, historical trends, and under different scenarios of intervention or non-intervention (e.g. Users will be able to see a prediction of whether gender equality in specific themes/ domains may worsen or improve in 1-year or 5-years if nothing is done or with intervention).

  • Build a Social Return on Investment (SROI) model to prioritize recommendations and "what works" based on the impact per dollar invested
     

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