Women in Tech with Marwa Abuqrian - Leveraging data analytics to anticipate crises

The Women in Tech series puts the spotlight on women who are championing the advancement of transformative technology and digital innovations across UNDP. By sharing these inspiring individual stories, we hope to encourage others to choose this path and spur gender equality in the digital sector.

January 22, 2025

diagram — Women in Tech - Marwa Abuqrian

@UNDP

This edition of Women in Tech features Marwa Abuqrian, working in the Crisis Bureau. She’s leveraging data analytics to anticipate and prevent crises globally. Marwa’s UNDP journey is shaped by her time spent in a refugee camp as a child. Born to Palestinian parents who were displaced to Jordan, she witnessed firsthand how humanitarian work could transform lives, giving her a clear sense of direction from an early age. “I always had this idea that I would like to do something for the community,” Marwa recalls, “I want to make a change”.

As a teenager she volunteered in her community, and at 18, Marwa got her first full-time job with an international NGO in Jordan, where she worked while completing a degree in business administration. “Although my education was in business, all the roles I had were centered around data,” she explains. “I started as a data management assistant, then worked as an Information Data Officer for the Norwegian Refugee Council. I’ve had to do a lot of self-studies to improve my technical skills.”

Today, Marwa is a Regional Information Management Officer in UNDP’s Crisis Bureau. Here she leads efforts to use data analytics to enhance crisis response efforts with a focus on the Arab States, Central Asia and Europe. She and her team have developed and currently manage over 30 Crisis Risks Dashboards (CRD), which support UNDP Country Offices and Regional Hubs to anticipate and prevent risks through multidimensional risk analysis.

a group of people sitting at a table — Marwa presenting the Crisis Risks Dashboards at a regional workshop in Jordan, Amman on conflict prevention and peacebuilding.

©UNDP Jordan

"By integrating data on political violence, socio-economic conditions, and other multidimensional risks, we can analyze, visualize and overlay data in one dashboard to support decision-making.

These dashboards pull together data in different formats and from diverse sources, including the UNDP CRD Data Warehouse, internal data provided by the country team and open-source data such as ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data) and World Bank data in one centralized place. “By integrating data on political violence, socio-economic conditions, and other multidimensional risks, we can analyze, visualize and overlay data in one dashboard to support evidence-driven decision-making” Marwa explains. So far, the dashboards have proved immensely helpful. "In Tunisia, for example, the dashboard supported our early warning efforts by monitoring social protests and analyzing their geographic distribution," Marwa adds. She also highlights how the dashboards serve as a vital communication tool that help to educate and inform international partners and donors.

“In many cases, offices request specific information that isn’t readily available,” Marwa explains. “Then when we collaborate closely with our colleagues in the Country Offices to identify the right data sources."

"Our role is to organize, structure, and integrate this data, ensuring it's easily accessible to everyone.”

One of Marwa’s standout projects has been developing a dashboard for Gaza since the 2023 conflict began. This dashboard combines data on everything from political violence, solid waste management, and inflation, to give a holistic, real-time picture of the region. “By combining data on explosions and fatalities with economic indicators such as inflation and the consumer price index, we offer a comprehensive, multidimensional perspective on the context” she says.

This project is especially meaningful to her, not only because of its impact but also because of her personal connection to Gaza. “Some colleagues asked if it was a good idea for me to work on something so close to me. I wanted to do this. At least in this way, I feel I am doing something."

"It feels good to work with our colleagues who are in Gaza right now."

Marwa’s work highlights the role of technology as a core enabler for UNDP’s operations in the most challenging environments. By leveraging data, she is helping UNDP and our beneficiaries to anticipate and respond to crises with greater precision and efficiency. Through experiences like Marwa's, we showcase the diverse ways in which technology is being used to tackle some of the world’s most urgent challenges.