17 visualization can be helpful to spot trends and outliers. Spatial mapping, for example, can identify geographic hotspots that may need a targeted policy response. Basic analysis of descriptive statistics supports limited forms of evidence-based decision-making. For example, demographic statistics are used by many departments to plan and prioritize infrastructure investments, targeting those investments to the greatest number of beneficiaries. To prioritize road investments, the Department of Rural Roads Development (DRRD) may use information about communities’ access to existing infrastructure, services, and markets; the number of potential beneficiaries; and information on the existing road network.39 This analysis does not extend to a comprehensive cost-benefit or cost-effectiveness analysis, however, because officials must still decide subjectively how to quantify and weight different costs and benefits. Data analysis to inform decision-making is limited to routine administration rather than more complex local issues or evaluating policy interventions. At the township level, data is not yet commonly used to develop a detailed understanding of local issues and policy responses, in part because of Myanmar’s highly centralized system of decision-making. Township officials often do not view themselves as decisionmakers or policymakers and have not historically been encouraged to. Many officials view their role as “neutrally” and passively implementing instructions from above, rather than proactively setting the agenda and developing policy responses. For example, while officials may use tax data to estimate next year’s tax revenues, they are unlikely to use data to develop policy for raising revenues, such as by analyzing trends in tax avoidance or evasion, the effectiveness of tax collection practices, or the impact of previous interventions. This failure to apply data to more complex decision-making is of crucial importance, because strengthening local governance in Myanmar will depend on strengthening capacities and promoting a culture in which township department officials are expected to understand local issues in greater detail, tailor policy responses to local conditions, and evaluate the impact of interventions. At the township level, there is little interdepartmental data use to formulate consensus views and shared responses. As a legacy of previous ways of working, departments continue to carry out many of their functions in siloes, with limited data sharing or coordination to resolve local issues. At present, very little shared data analysis occurs among township departments. As township administrations and their constituent departments increasingly pursue people-centered development, however, there will be greater need for multiagency policy responses. Many emerging issues such as the development of the road network (box C), public safety, drug dependency, and homelessness require multi-agency responses. The ability of township department officials to analyze and use data in increasingly sophisticated ways is limited by several factors. Granting that there are large BOX C Developing a township’s road network: the need for multiagency understanding and responses The road network in Myanmar is managed by a various departments in a number of ministries. In the Ministry of Construction, the Department of Highways is responsible for major interstate and intertownship roads, and the DRRD is responsible for the core rural roads network. In some townships, the Progress of Border Areas and National Races Department of the Ministry of Border Affairs is responsible for parts of the rural road network. In the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation, the DRD is responsible for some intra-village roads and farm access roads. In urban areas, the Development Affairs Organizations are responsible for most roads. In addition to the obvious need for these departments to coordinate to avoid overlapping or incompatible road investments, the roads network also has significant effects on a broad range of other departments and their plans. For example, sound road investments are important for health and education departments to maximize access to services, and urban road planning needs to be coordinated with telecommunications and lighting infrastructure. So, in order to understand the potential benefits of a given road investment, compare competing road investments, and determine the right sequence of investments for the greatest impact, many departments need to work together to share information, jointly determine priorities, and develop a coordinated, strategic plan that ensures the best value for money.