What are the challenges ahead in capturing the right data in the right places and the right times?

To coincide with the publication of ‘Improved measurement for mothers, newborns and children in the era of the Sustainable Development Goals’ in the Journal of Global Health, IDEAS’ Communications Officer Rhys Williams joined John Grove (BMGF), Tanya Marchant (IDEAS) and Arup Das (India Health Action Trust) at the margins of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) Learning Forum for Maternal and Newborn Health in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss the importance of data in policy making for maternal and newborn child health.

• What was the rationale behind the forum?
• Why is data important for maternal and newborn child health?
• Why is the alignment of indicators important?
• What has been the experience of the India Health Action Trust in Uttar Pradesh?