Strengthening Data Systems, Tracking Practices, and Digital Tools to Support Evidence-Informed Engagement of People with Disabilities

Reliable, well-disaggregated data on persons with disabilities remain scarce in many national statistical and programmatic systems, and this gap continues to undermine evidence-informed policymaking, service delivery, and accountability. This paper examines how strengthened data systems, harmonized tracking practices, and accessible digital tools can support more meaningful, evidence-informed engagement of people with disabilities across health, education, employment, and humanitarian sectors. Drawing on global frameworks such as the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the paper reviews the rationale for disability-disaggregated data, the role of standardized instruments such as the Washington Group Questions, the contribution of digital and assistive technologies to inclusive data collection and service engagement, and the persistent barriers of financing, capacity, and meaningful participation by organizations of persons with disabilities. These themes are further examined through practitioner-generated findings from a disability rights NGO peer-learning session on data and digital infrastructure, which illustrate how global-level barriers manifest in the day-to-day tool choices, tracking practices, and peer-support needs of frontline organizations. The paper concludes that strengthening data systems is not a technical exercise alone; it requires co-designed, rights-based, and adequately resourced approaches that center the lived experience of people with disabilities throughout the data value chain.