It was a continuation of the same study conducted in 2013 in 22 districts/cities in 3 provinces of the Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY), Central Java, and East Java. It was self-initiated research for knowledge products research implemented by SurveyMETER with the support of the 2015 Knowledge Sector Initiative (KSI) Program. The fieldwork was held from January 6 to January 16, 2015.

It was conducted in 3 cities in East Kalimantan Province: Balikpapan, Samarinda, and Kutai Kartanegara. In each city, a number of sources were interviewed, namely the head/chairman/deputy head/deputy chairman/secretary of BAPPEDA, the education office, the health office, government work units (SKPD) consultants, and the sample district/city central statistics agency (BPS). The selection of respondents was referred to the largest SKPD institutions in terms of coverage and utilizing data.

The expected objective of this research is to find out whether the sampled cities have used accurate, updated, and accountable data in every policymaking that serves as a guide for the regions in the process of administering local government. In detail, the purpose of this study is covered in question points; Does the local government use data for policy planning? What data are used by regions in policy planning? What is the quality of data and data collection procedures used by regions in policy planning? How is the data quality assurance process carried out by local governments? Do regions use technical consultants to assist in policy planning? What is the budget used by the regions for technical consultants? What constraints facing regions in relation to the use of data for policy planning? (JF)