Administrative data collected by governments and service providers day-to-day is an increasingly important source for producing official statistics. There is an urgent need to strengthen the capacity of national statistical systems to leverage the use of this administrative data for statistical purposes: to fill gaps in the data available for monitoring progress and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals; and to address emerging challenges, as evidenced by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Responding to this challenge, the United Nations Statistics Division and the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data jointly convened the Collaborative on Administrative Data (CAD) in 2020. This multi-stakeholder collaborative of countries and regional and international agencies aims to strengthen the capacity of countries to use administrative data sources for statistical purposes. Given the central role that administrative data plays in its organizational goals, UN Women joined as convener of the Collaborative in 2024.

The Collaborative addresses both urgent and longer-term needs around access to and use of administrative data for statistical purposes, building on advances made in various sectors and by different partners. The Collaborative is a platform to share resources, tools, best practices, and experiences. It aims to contribute to raising awareness among all members of national statistical systems about the benefits of sharing and combining administrative sources to enhance the quality, timeliness, coverage, and level of disaggregation of statistical data.

Learn more and explore the resources here.

Members and structure

The Collaborative has members from over 30 national statistical offices, and 30 regional and international agencies, and non-governmental organizations. Membership is open to other actors, particularly to countries who want to increase and improve their use of administrative data for statistical purposes. While the main representatives from countries are from NSOs, they are encouraged to, as much as possible, also involve and engage the owners of the administrative data in their countries.

The Collaborative is split into three task teams:

Task team 1: Institutional framework, coordination and partnerships – co-led by National Statistical Offices from Chile, the UK, Kenya and the UK.

Task team 2: Data management and standardization – co-led by National Statistical Offices from Bhutan and the Dominican Republic.  

Task team 3: Technical interoperability and linking – co-led by National Statistical Offices from Ghana, Colombia, Singapore, Uruguay and by Development Gateway, an IREX Venture.

The Collaborative’s Task Team membership is open to all members and encourages members interested in the specific topic to join the work. 

The Collaborative includes technical experts across the globe and draws on the expertise of UN regional and specialized agencies and other organizations, and initiatives. The Collaborative hosts virtual expert clinics and webinars throughout the year on topics of interest to members. To learn more about joining the Collaborative on Administrative Data, email [email protected] and [email protected]. 

Celebrating five years of the CAD

Papa Seck

Chief Research and Data
UN Women

Administrative data is no longer the silent sibling of surveys—it is now central to how we understand gender gaps, track service delivery, and inform policy. UN Women will continue to champion this collective effort to make administrative data a pillar of sustainable development.

Isabella Schmidt

Regional Gender Statistics Specialist
UN Women

The CAD has laid the foundation for smarter, faster, and more inclusive statistics. Now, we must build on that foundation—scaling innovations, strengthening governance, and centring gender in every dataset. UN Women is ready to lead this charge, ensuring that data drives real progress for women and girls everywhere.

Dr. Shantanu Mukherjee

Acting Director
UN Statistics Division

The Collaborative has built a vibrant community where countries learn from one another, build trust, and unlock the potential of the data they collect every day. Administrative data is a powerful asset—and through working together, we can transform it into actionable statistics that improve lives and ensure that no one is left behind.

Jenna Slotin

Interim CEO
Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data

Leveraging administrative data is the surest way to get the timely, granular information needed to design policies and programs for SDG acceleration.

Joining the CAD gives you access to new tools and opportunities for peer learning. It’s the easiest and most affordable investment you can make in your administrative data systems.

Aylin Flores

Coordinator of Statistical Population Register Project
INE Chile

Experiences and lessons learned from other countries during the development of tools, processes, and country cases have been fundamental for us. 

Collective knowledge is the key not only for not leaving anyone behind but boosting everyone forward. 

Silja Emmel

Senior Advisor
Statistics Norway

The use of administrative data for the census has saved countries like Uruguay and Mongolia a lot of money compared to costly traditional census operations, freeing up money for other projects that benefit the population.

Sonam Tenzin

Director General
National Statistics Bureau of Bhutan

Being part of the CAD has been an eye-opening experience. It motivated us to strengthen the way government agencies in Bhutan maintain and use their data.

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