Experts Discuss How Big Data Will Shape Future of Government, Transform Lives of Citizens

Sunday 12 February 2017

Dubai  - MENA Herald : While the concept of big data is gaining popularity, not all governments understand its far-reaching potential. This point was driven home by the Government CIO of Singapore’s Infocomm Development Authority at the fifth edition of the World Government Summit (WGS 2017) that got underway in Dubai today. “For the longest time ever, most governments struggled with data because they did not know how to use it effectively,” said Chan Cheow Hoe. His comments came as part of a panel discussion titled ‘Future of Government in Collaboration with the World Bank’, which discussed how governments can take advantage of the big data explosion and also examined how big data can transform the way in which governments deliver public services. According to Dr Brandon Barnett, Director of Corporate Strategy, Intel, the real promise of big data is that it helps governments to understand what problems they need to solve and prioritize. He said: “Data is an asset. It’s the new oil. It needs to be refined and used optimally.” Seconding this opinion, Deborah Wetzel, Senior Director for Governance Global Practice, the World Bank said: “Governments are in the business of solving problems for their citizens. Data tools provide them with the opportunity to solve these problems in real-time.” Robbie Schingler, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy officer, Planet Labs discussed how big data can help governments allocate resources more efficiently. “You can use data to see how ecosystems have changed over time. Practically, that means monitoring food security, water security, population growth or urban growth.” The World Government Summit has attracted more than 4,000 personalities from over 139 countries. The attendees include VIPs and senior experts from the public and private sectors globally, ministers, decision makers, CEOs, innovators, officials, experts, entrepreneurs, academics, and university students. Several initiatives, reports and studies are set to be launched during the summit and throughout the year. The summit runs from February 12 to 14, 2017 at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai.

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