The core part of any data management process is the database in which the data are stored. This can be anything from a spreadsheet to a simple file based database to a server based relational database.

Many organisations start using Excel as the basis of their data as it is widely available and many people know how to use it. As the amount of data grows it tends to get more and more complicated to manage and often pollution of the data becomes an issue. At this point, organisations start thinking of alternatives, but shrink back from using a ‘database’ as this seems to be beyond their capacity to use.

A good option in this case can be to use a file based database, such as Access. In ease of use it is not much more complicated than Excel, but it makes it possible to do a lot more quality checking on the data and helps keeping the data consistent. It also opens up possibilities for automated reporting that can be useful for monitoring purposes.

As the need for data management increases and more people need simultaneous access to the database it can make sense to move to a server based relational database, for example using PostgreSQL which is Open Source and available for free.

Chanzo can support you in deciding which option is suitable for your organisation, which depends on the capacity of your staff. It pays to make sure that the solution you choose closely aligns with this capacity. Chanzo can also design and implement the chosen solution. In the following projects Chanzo has designed database solutions:

• Asset management database for water utilities
• Internal control system for certification of smallholder farmers
• Monitoring and evaluation database for smallholder farmers
• Improved data management for water utilities