Increasing the use of administrative databases to foster innovation

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Andy Handouyahia and Essolaba Aouli

Employment and Social Development Canada, Canada

: J Comput Eng Inf Technol

Abstract

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The use of administrative data sources for program evaluation has increased in recent years. This paper discusses the improvements in past years in the use of linked administrative data files to facilitate program net impact evaluation. Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) has pioneered and implemented the innovative, “Medium Term Indicators (MTI)” initiative, consisting of 20-year longitudinal integrated administrative data files from Employment Insurance (EI) and Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) income taxes data files. The MTI initiative grants evaluators/researchers the ability to effectively and efficiently measure incremental program impacts over various time periods, using state-of-the-art econometric techniques alongside well-organized, detailed administrative data files. This new initiative is designed to assist decision-making in the context of Government of Canada policy on results, supporting evidence-based evaluation analyses and enabling the examination of many different kinds of labour market research topics. Furthermore, this new approach to labour market program evaluation has also significantly reduced the need to conduct costly surveys and has provided timely evidence-based guidance to support both program and policy development.

Biography

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Andy Handouyahia is currently a Manager in the Evaluation Directorate at Employment and Social Development Canada. He is responsible for the methodology and the data. Andy holds a Master of Science degree from the University of Sherbrooke obtained in 1997. Before pursuing his master's degree, he held a degree in Applied Mathematics. He has been teaching for nearly 20 years as a lecturer at the Université du Québec en Outaouais. He worked for over 13 years at Statistics Canada where he was responsible for data collection and processing. Thereafter in 2009 he joined the Treasury Board Secretariat as Business Solutions.

E-mail: andy.handouyahia@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca