Agenda

Mr Paul Blanchard is a development economist specializing in the use of novel data sources, particularly mobile phone data, to strengthen national statistics and address key development challenges. He works as a consultant with the World Bank’s Global Data Facility, contributing to the Mobile Phone Data for Policy program. His work focuses on both data governance and applied research on topics such as mobility, migration, displacement, and poverty. Paul holds a PhD in Economics from Trinity College Dublin, an MSc in Development Economics from the University of Oxford, and an engineering degree from École Centrale Paris.

Mr Fredrik Eriksson is a Data Scientist of the ICT Data and Analytics Division of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) with nearly 20 years of experience in quantitative analysis from international organisations and across the private sector. Fredrik has previously been responsible for ITU’s data collection on ICT household statistics, and re-joined ITU in 2021 to focus on ITU’s work on big data after spending a few years building a Data Science team in the private sector. Prior to first joining ITU, he also worked in the finance sector and spent eight years at the OECD analysing international finance flows for economic development. Fredrik holds a Master’s degree in Statistics from Uppsala University in Sweden.

Mrs Esperanza Magpantay is the Senior Statistician at the ICT Data and Analytics Division of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), where she has worked since 2000. She leads the collection, harmonization, and dissemination of global ICT statistics and coordinated the work of the ITU Expert Groups on ICT Indicators. She also represents ITU in major international forums, including the UN Statistical Commission, the UN World Data Forum, and the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development. Ms. Magpantay chairs the UN Committee of Experts on Big Data and Data Science for Official Statistics’ Task Team on Mobile Phone Data, bringing together over 50 experts from international and national statistical bodies to advance the use of mobile data for official statistics, and co-leads the ITU/World Bank project on using Mobile Phone Data to Work for Policy. She regularly delivers trainings and presentations at regional and global events. Prior to joining ITU, she worked as a statistical officer at the International Labour Office (ILO) for seven years. She holds a Global Master in Business Analytics and Big Data from IE University, Madrid Spain and a BSc in Statistics from the University of the Philippines.

Dr Daniel Power is the Managing Director of the Flowminder Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to utilising mobile and other data to inform and support humanitarian and development policy and decision-making. With a background in data analysis and strategic project management, Dr Power leads Flowminder’s efforts to enhance the use of mobile data in addressing critical global challenges.