Using CDR data for producing displacement and disaster statistics involves at least two actors, namely the data producer and end users. The data producer is a mobile network operator and/or telecommunications regulator, who has access to CDR data. The data user is an end user where there is a demand for timely and quality data for informing policies and response efforts. A government is the primary data user; it also includes aid agencies and NGOs who deliver support to affected populations. It usually takes time to reach a consensus on the use of CDR data, including agreement on how data are accessed, processed, and used (Arai et al. 2020). Having an institutional framework allows the government to quickly extend development objectives for partnerships for responding to emergency situations. Even if an existing framework or data pipeline is not perfect for producing statistical products, it can lower the response burden of both the MNO and regulator while ensuring privacy protection.
On top of the institutional framework, it is important to have an analytical pipeline that processes CDR data and provides information products as aggregate statistics. This often involves another actor called intermediary. The intermediary assists the data producer and data user in enhancing their technical capacities to work with CDR data, which require specific skill sets and environment. They also facilitate technical communication between the data producer and data users, set-up system, and provide analytical tools for processing CDR data. Having system and code in place at the time of disasters is useful particularly under disaster context. After the onset of a disaster where the situation is volatile and quick decision-making is required, growing data demands can easily overwhelm the analytical and processing capacity. In such a case, pre-existing institutional framework and analytical pipeline could lower the response burden and advance the analytical objectives (Kishore et al. 2020). The contributions below demonstrate how system-building approaches could make timely analysis based on CDR data available for quick decision making.
