The Data Is Not Missing, We’re Just Not Capturing It Right

There’s a belief that keeps coming up in conversations about Africa: “We don’t have enough data.” But the more you look around, the more that statement starts to feel… incomplete. Because things are happening. People are working. People are trading. People are solving problems every single day. So how can all of that be happening and still not show up anywhere?

What You See on the Ground vs What Exists on Paper

Take a walk through a busy street in Yaoundé or Douala. You’ll see movement everywhere. A woman selling food and adjusting her prices based on demand. A mechanic diagnosing problems just by listening to an engine. A farmer deciding when to plant based on patterns they’ve observed for years.

There is knowledge in all of this. Decisions are being made. Problems are being solved. But very little of it is written down. Very little of it is tracked. Very little of it becomes something others can learn from. So when someone sits down to “study the problem,” they’re not seeing the full picture. They’re seeing a small part of it.

Why This Keeps Happing

It’s not because people don’t want to share (though a portion of people and institutions don't want to share). And it’s not because the information doesn’t exist. It’s because the way we try to collect information doesn’t match how people live. We ask people to fill forms. To use apps they’ve never heard of. To follow systems that feel unfamiliar.

But in reality, most people already have their own way of sharing information. They call someone. They send a voice note. They ask around. Information moves, but it moves through people, not platforms. So when we ignore that, we miss everything.

The real problem isn’t effort; it's that the systems don’t fit how people actually live and work.

We’ve built many systems to collect data. But most of them are designed for environments where:

People are used to formal processes. People have stable internet access. People are comfortable with structured tools. That’s not the reality for a large part of Cameroon and Africa as a whole. So the issue is not effort. It’s fit. The systems exist. But they don’t fit the way people actually live and work.

And That Affects Everything We Build

When the picture is incomplete, decisions become shaky. Not because people don’t care. But because they’re working with limited information. A solution might look perfect in theory but feel off in real life. And when people don’t connect with it, it fades. Not because it’s useless. But because it didn’t reflect them.

So What Needs to Change?

Not everything. Just a few important things.

1. Start With What Already Works

Instead of forcing new systems on people, we can build around what they already use. If people are comfortable sending voice notes, let that be the starting point. If information flows through conversations, then systems should be able to learn from those conversations. We don’t need to replace behavior. We need to understand it.

2. Make It Easy to Share, Not Hard

The more steps you add, the fewer people will participate. Simple always wins. A quick message. A photo. A short explanation. That’s enough.

3. Work With Communities, Not Around Them

There are already trusted groups: cooperatives, local leaders, and community networks (Njangi houses). They understand the people better than any external system ever could. Instead of bypassing them, we should involve them. That’s where trust comes from.

4. Let People See the Value

People are more willing to share when they see a result. If someone gives information, they should get something back: Better advice, clearer direction, something useful in return. When people see that, they stay engaged.

This Is a Shared Responsibility

This is not just for developers. Not just for governments. Not just for investors. It concerns all of us. Because decisions at every level depend on what is known. And what is known depends on what is captured. If we want better systems, better policies, and better tools, then we need better ways of capturing what is already happening around us.

Conclusion

What if the problem is not that we lack data…but that we’ve been looking in the wrong places?

Africa is not empty of knowledge. Far from it. There is experience everywhere. There are patterns everywhere. There are insights everywhere. But until we start capturing them in ways that make sense for our reality, we’ll keep working with half the picture. And building from half the picture will always give half the result.

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