Afrobarometer holds inaugural D4GA Continental Convening in Accra

Pan-African civil society group, Afrobarometer, is holding its inaugural convening for the Data for Governance Alliance (D4GA) initiative in Ghana’s capital, Accra.

The convening, which is on the theme “Reflecting on the journey: D4GA’s impact and learning from 2021–2025,” started on April 20, 2026 and will end on April 24, 2026.

The main objective of the event, which saw many civil society organisations (CSOs) from across the African continent in attendance, was to review the progress made under the various objectives of the programme, including capacity building, data analysis, data usage in advocacy and data communication.

It was also to review the effectiveness of the policy actors, AU organs and others that have been collaborating, and to use the platform to reflect on and share experiences and strengthen commitments towards realising a vision enshrined in Agenda 2063 of the African Union.

In his welcome address at the event, Prof E Gyimah-Boadi, a senior adviser at Afrobarometer, highlighted the importance of the D4GA for the development of the African continent.

He noted that the initiative was particularly important given the happenings, and that there is the need for the CSOs, who have been implementing it, to meet to evaluate and make it better.

“And in a moment when democratic backsliding, disinformation and authoritarian resurgence threaten hard-won gains, the roles of civil society and the D4GA are really indispensable. So, strengthening this sector, specifically strengthening the space and organisations that inhabit it, is in every meaningful sense an investment in the future of African democratic governance itself,” he said.



Prof E Gyimah-Boadi

The Afrobarometer senior adviser further stated that the D4GA initiative was created to help solve Africa’s challenges with data.

“The Data for Governance Alliance was born out of this clear and pressing need to address three critical gaps standing in the way of achieving the goals set under Agenda 2063 — first, limited citizen awareness of the agenda; second, insufficient access to citizen-generated data for civil society organisations; and third, persistent challenges in tracking the implementation of the African governance platforms' commitments,” he explained.

In his keynote address, Ambassador Salah Hammad, the head of the African Governance Architecture (AGA) Secretariat, while commending Afrobarometer and the D4GA initiative, noted that there is some work to be done in this field.

He indicated that while some success has been made in data collection on the continent, the policymakers and the citizenry often do not apply it in decision-making.



Ambassador Salah Hammad

“We also came to realise that there is a small issue that needs to be addressed. Despite the fact that we have so many rich organisations capable of collecting data, unfortunately, our officials don't have the time to digest the data. They don't have time to benefit and make decisions that are data-oriented.

“So, the question I want to turn to you today as part of your campaign to develop and collect data is: how can you make your data easily accessible and easily digested by our officials, but also by our African citizens? We don't want your data to be directed to the elite of society. We want your data to be available to each and every African citizen, who will know what is going on in the world,” he said.

The ambassador, therefore, hoped that this challenge would be addressed so that data would become central in the governance process on the continent.

More about the D4GA:

The D4GA is aimed at promoting data-based advocacy and engagement between pan-African civil society organisations (CSOs) and members of the African Union’s African Governance Architecture Platform (AGP).

The alliance is made up of five distinguished consortium partner members, with Afrobarometer as the lead institution, working with the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Nairobi, the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation in Cape Town, South Africa, and the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development based in Accra, as well as North Africa.

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