What Cannot Be Measured Cannot Be Improved: Towards an Effective National Measurement System in Palestine

Author: أ. لما عواد

The phrase "What cannot be measured cannot be improved," attributed to management expert Peter Drucker, serves as a fundamental principle in governance, development, and accountability in modern states. To achieve effective change, we need accurate information that goes beyond merely knowing the problem to determine its scale and impact over time.

In the Palestinian context, the value of measurement is compounded by a fragile political and economic reality, scarce resources, and an occupation that restricts movement and information. We urgently need precise measurement tools that present a clear picture of recurring dilemmas and crises, helping us direct our reform efforts.

Structural Barriers to Measurement in Palestine

He who does not have his data does not have his decision. In the absence of measurement, planning remains hostage to intuition. In the Palestinian case, despite the existence of established institutions like the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics and the Office of Financial and Administrative Control, the culture of measurement still suffers. The ability to produce knowledge and accurate facts is an urgent necessity to confront dominance, resist marginalization, and allocate resources in a society suffering from scarcity and fragmentation, and to contribute to enhancing capacity and responsiveness to emergencies and developmental planning.

The culture of "measurement" still faces structural impediments, ranging from a lack of will, politicization of data, to weak sectoral coordination. National plans lack clear measurement indicators, making actual performance evaluation nearly impossible. Institutions suffer from a lack of coordination among ministries, hindering effective decision-making. Furthermore, occupation-related constraints impose barriers to conducting comprehensive censuses and surveys, creating gaps in national data.

Thus, the ability to measure and analyze becomes a condition for survival, not just for improvement. Issues like poverty, unemployment, gender-based violence, or gaps in education and health cannot be addressed without accurate, updated, and analyzable data.

Although Palestine has launched several ambitious national plans, such as "The National Policy Agenda 2017-2022: The Citizen First," many of these plans remain confined to general slogans without linking them to clear quantitative performance indicators or systematic monitoring and evaluation tools. This was confirmed by several reports from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in 2022, which pointed out that "the weak presence of measurable monitoring indicators in Palestinian plans hinders the transition of policies from intentions to results." A review conducted by the Office of Financial and Administrative Control for the year 2021 for the "Administrative Reform" plan showed that 68% of the objectives were not linked to quantitative indicators, impeding the evaluation of ministerial performance. The UNDP Palestine 2022 report indicated that "the lack of human rights-based measurement tools hinders comprehensive tracking of policy impacts on vulnerable groups."

Palestinian institutions suffer from a lack of horizontal coordination among ministries and rely on outdated or fragmented data, sometimes based on estimates or partial surveys. This was echoed by the Office of Financial and Administrative Control in its 2023 annual report, which noted the existence of 14 entities providing social services without a central information system that ensures integration and data exchange between them. An ESCWA study in 2022 on statistical systems in Arab countries categorized Palestine among the countries that "have a strong statistical structure, but suffer from weak coordination between data producers and users." The OECD report on transparency in public policies (2021) warned that countries relying on old data suffer from "decision-making based on intuition rather than evidence."

The Israeli occupation presents a material and methodological barrier to the Palestinian capacity to conduct comprehensive and regular measurements, whether by preventing census operations in Jerusalem, obstructing researchers' work in Area C, or through the destruction of infrastructure in Gaza during repeated assaults. This was highlighted in the UNICEF report on Palestine 2023, which showed that "the restrictions imposed by the occupation impede the implementation of population surveys, especially in remote areas, resulting in knowledge gaps that hinder planning." In the World Bank report on "Poverty and Inequality in the Palestinian Territories" (2022), it was noted that "the absence of accurate data in some areas prevents the optimal allocation of aid and weakens transparency." According to Human Rights Watch (2022), "Israel deliberately undermines Palestinian information systems in East Jerusalem as part of a policy of control and knowledge management." Some tangible barriers include:

•    Since 1967, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics has not been permitted to conduct comprehensive field surveys in East Jerusalem.

•    During the aggression against Gaza in May 2021, 66 educational facilities were destroyed, resulting in a loss of education indicators for thousands of students without the possibility of compensating the data.

•    Many health-related surveys, such as the Multi-Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), are delayed for years due to complexities of field movement and permits.

•    The occupation has prevented the population census in Jerusalem since 1967, and prevents census teams from entering more than 60% of Area C.
Towards a Palestinian Measurement Culture

The absence of precise measurement tools in the Palestinian context is not merely an administrative glitch, but a strategic barrier that prevents us from knowing where we stand, where we are headed, and how we can improve. "What cannot be measured cannot be improved" is not just an administrative slogan; it is a call to reclaim intellectual sovereignty and liberate national decision-making from ambiguity.

We must institutionalize permanent monitoring and evaluation units in ministries and agencies, so that the evaluation process becomes part of the policy cycle, not a mere formal stage after the fact. According to the Office of Financial and Administrative Control (2022) report, 73% of externally funded government programs lack an integrated monitoring and evaluation plan from the design phase, which complicates measuring actual impact. The UN ESCWA 2023 report stated that "the absence of an institutional evaluation culture in Arab countries leads to a waste exceeding 3% of GDP annually due to poor planning."

Investing in building national capacities to enhance measurement methodology, qualifying young researchers to lead measurement, data collection, and analysis processes, and directing support towards building national competencies and launching programs in the fields of applied statistics, data analysis, participatory evaluation techniques, vocational training, and engaging universities in developing related specialties.

Relying on external experts or donor agencies to conduct surveys and evaluations creates a knowledge gap and weakens sustainability. Birzeit University launched a pilot program in 2024 on "social measurement and evidence-based policies," but its impact remains limited unless it is generalized.

Engaging the local community: Digital data alone is not enough. In-depth interviews, focus groups, and social mapping reveal what numbers do not show. Oxfam reports indicate that projects that engaged communities in evaluation had a 40% increase in their sustainability. The UNDP Palestine report (2023) recommended using participatory tools in policy design, especially in humanitarian sectors, for their effectiveness in enhancing intervention efficacy.

Enhancing transparency and accountability by utilizing results (from measurement to accountability): Without publishing the results of measurement and evaluation to the public and linking them to clear accountability mechanisms to improve performance and rectify paths, measurement tools lose their significance and become mere papers in drawers. Regularly publishing measurement results through an "Annual Government Measurement Report" and launching open data platforms to connect numbers with action plans, while granting civil society tools for performance accountability.

Internationalizing occupation barriers by documenting the restrictions imposed by the occupation and raising them to international forums to pressure for the freedom of data collection, as it is a sovereign right, not a technical detail.

In Palestine, he who does not have his data does not have his decision. If we want to build a resilient, maneuverable, and growing state, we must start from where advanced nations begin: with indicators, measurement, and continuous evaluation. The future is not built on intuition, but on facts.

"What cannot be measured cannot be improved" is not just a famous phrase, but a survival strategy and the cornerstone of every systematic development process. Between occupation, division, and economic crises, Palestine has no choice but to transition from a culture of estimation to a culture of evaluation, from intuitive management to data-driven management. Advancing countries base their decisions on indicators, not impressions. If we want to resist and excel, we must own our data and use it. Effective measurement has become a necessity and a survival strategy.

The future is not built on intuition, but on facts, and those who do not measure remain captive to improvisation, repeating their mistakes instead of correcting them.