Certified with the Data Seal of Approval in 2014 and the CoreTrustSeal Trusted Digital Repository award in 2018
DataFirst is a research data service dedicated to giving open access to data from African countries.
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Latest Datasets
View the latest dataset available from our open data portal: the Rural Urban Dynamics Project produced by LURA, and the Green Occupations Crosswalk Data produced by SALDRU.
Building Capacity and Connections: AFLEARN's Foundational Learning Data Management and Analysis Course
For one week, a diverse group representing 13 African countries gathered to strengthen their skills in managing and analysing foundational learning data and build lasting connections with peers pursuing similar goals.
Global recognition advances UCT's research accessibility and reliability
The University of Cape Town's, ZivaHub has been awarded the CoreTrustSeal Certification. DataFirst was a forerunner in achieving the certification, becoming the first African data repository to receive the CoreTrustSeal in 2018.
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Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Opportunity
We invite applications for a postdoctoral position to work in the AFLEARN Data Hub. The successful candidate will be involved in original empirical research; collating and analysing large-scale African foundational learning data; publishing
Building Capacity and Connections: AFLEARN's Foundational Learning Data Management and Analysis Course
For one week, a diverse group representing 13 African countries gathered to strengthen their skills in managing and analysing foundational learning data and build lasting connections with peers pursuing similar goals.
Read more
Building Sustainable Assessment Systems for Improved Learning in Africa
Millions of children in Africa are unable to acquire age-appropriate skills in reading and mathematics especially in their early years.
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Latest Datasets
View the latest dataset available from our open data portal: the Rural Urban Dynamics Project produced by LURA, and the Green Occupations Crosswalk Data produced by SALDRU.
Read more
Mapping the Landscape of One-on-One Foundational Learning Assessments in Africa
In many African contexts, classroom-based or large-scale standardized assessments often fall short. One-on-one (1:1) assessments offer an alternative.
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Early Grade Reading Study Data
Data for all years of the Department of Basic Education’s Early Grade Reading Study are now available from our data site. Some key findings are that teacher coaching is effective, and the language used in learning is important.
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Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Opportunity
We invite applications for a postdoctoral position to work in the AFLEARN Data Hub. The successful candidate will be involved in original empirical research; collating and analysing large-scale African foundational learning data; publishing
Read more
Global recognition advances UCT's research accessibility and reliability
The University of Cape Town's, ZivaHub has been awarded the CoreTrustSeal Certification. DataFirst was a forerunner in achieving the certification, becoming the first African data repository to receive the CoreTrustSeal in 2018.
Read more
WORLD Policy Analysis Center Datasets
In partnership with DataFirst, the WORLD Policy Analysis Center is thrilled to announce the release of open access longitudinal quantitative measures of laws and policies for African countries that lay the foundation for equal opportunities
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Foundational Learning Data for Impact: Mastering Data Interpretation and Communication 2024
AFLEARN’s inaugural one-week residential course took place from 4 to 8 November 2024, focusing on maximising the impact of foundational learning data.
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DataFirst presents at the Make Data Count Summit in London
Lynn Woolfrey, Manager of Data Services and Operations at DataFirst, was a Speaker at the Make Data Count Summit 2024 on the 5th and 6th of September.
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Our international certification
CoreTrustSeal is a certification organisation announced by the ICSU World Data System (WDS) and the Data Seal of Approval (DSA), which have merged their data repositories certification under the umbrella of the Research Data Alliance.
Our mission
DataFirst is committed to advancing data access and use for development in Africa. We promote open access to high-quality African microdata and support evidence-informed decision-making through data curation, research, and training. By working with data producers and users, we aim to strengthen data ecosystems across the continent. Our goal is to make African data more usable, accessible, and impactful.