Final Report: mSTAR/Bangladesh, Digital Development Trainings, and Other Activities FY 2015

Over the past decade, digital technology has become a crucial component in fostering development outcomes. mSTAR fosters the adoption and scale-up of digital finance, real-time data for decision making, and digital inclusion in developing countries through broad, flexible, and responsive technical assistance that emphasizes action learning. mSTAR's primary objective is to increase access and use of digital technologies by the poor, civil society, local government institutions, and private sector stakeholders to facilitate development outcomes. The program began by working in support of USAID's Digital Development team at USAID, now part of the Global Development Lab. Today, mSTAR supports the Lab's work, engaging closely with the Digital Development Team but also across the agency, in three areas: Digital Finance, Real-time Data for Decision Making, and Digital Inclusion. Digital Finance is a key area of focus for mSTAR, as inclusive electronic payments such as mobile money have the potential to lift millions out of poverty, contribute towards achieving Feed the Future objectives, and improve governance and public financial management by reducing costs and increasing transparency. mSTAR supports the development of robust digital finance ecosystems in targeted countries through increased use of existing systems and technical assistance to strengthen the supply, demand, and regulatory and policy frameworks. In its third year of implementation, mSTAR conducted various activities, including digital development trainings, to equip USAID Mission staff with the tools and knowledge to incorporate digital technology into future programming. The trainings, conducted in Ghana and Washington, DC, aimed to achieve four key objectives: providing an overview of the emerging digital economy, teaching participants how digital development can enhance core programming objectives, demonstrating digital development offerings, and highlighting USAID's role in supporting the digital economy. mSTAR also supported the Global Development Lab's Development Informatics Team to conduct research on data use in three USAID Missions – Uganda, Indonesia, and Zimbabwe. The research team, led by subcontractor Reboot Design, collected data in the USAID missions to better understand data use and identify opportunities for improvement. The research aimed to inform the development of more effective data-driven decision making practices and to identify best practices for data use in development programs. In addition to these activities, mSTAR conducted a Data Utilization Study to assess the state of digital financial inclusion and opportunities to facilitate sector growth in Mali. The study aimed to identify the current state of digital financial inclusion in Mali, assess the potential for growth, and identify opportunities for USAID to support the development of digital financial services in the country. The mSTAR Program has made significant progress in its third year of implementation, producing approximately 32 technical documents that generated evidence to support the efficiency, transparency, and safety gains that come as a result of using digital tools. The program also facilitated 31 knowledge-sharing events that increased the development community's understanding of digital tools for strengthening development outcomes. Furthermore, mSTAR engaged 131 organizations to share this knowledge and provided technical assistance and training to increase the effectiveness of mobile ecosystems and actors to serve low-income populations.