Audited AidData and World Bank source alignment workflow

2 min read

Audited AidData and World Bank source alignment workflow

  • Day: 2026-06-28
  • Time: 12:10 to 12:40
  • Project: Dev
  • Workspace: WP 2: Operational
  • Status: In Progress
  • Priority: HIGH
  • Assignee: Matías Nehuen Iglesias
  • Tags: Aiddata, World-Bank, Excel-Audit, Schema-Mapping, Csv-Staging, Data-Pipeline

Description

Session Goal

Audit and stabilize the data-ingestion workflow for AidData and World Bank sources before any further schema design or annotation mapping. The main objective was to verify the correct Excel sheet in the China AidData workbook, confirm the World Bank flat CSV status, and define a reproducible extraction/audit path for source-to-canonical alignment.

Key Activities

  • Reviewed the current state of the World Bank dataset and confirmed it was already consolidated with 22,900 records and no blocking issues.
  • Diagnosed the China AidData audit failure as likely caused by reading the wrong Excel sheet (likely a cover/codebook sheet rather than the actual data table).
  • Proposed a stepwise workbook inspection workflow: enumerate sheets, extract each sheet to interim CSVs, identify the primary data table, and then run schema profiling only on the verified primary sheet.
  • Reframed the pipeline to use CSV-based staging instead of SQLite for this segment, prioritizing raw-source immutability, preserved keys, stable headers, and explicit column mapping.
  • Defined a relational extraction approach for the AidData CLG-LMIC workbook, including normalized CSV outputs, audit artifacts, and downstream pandas-friendly usage.
  • Strengthened the source-to-annotator contract by requiring a verifiable inventory of raw columns, candidate canonical fields, coverage, and missingness before any merge or normalization step.
  • Established that extracted CSVs should be treated as the evidence layer for validation, with scripts that fail when the source→contract mapping breaks.

Achievements

  • Clarified that the World Bank source is usable and not the current blocker.
  • Identified the likely root cause of the China audit issue: the workbook was probably inspected on a non-data sheet.
  • Converged on a reproducible audit/extraction strategy based on sheet inspection, interim CSVs, and primary-table-only schema analysis.
  • Consolidated the design direction toward a canonical annotation contract supported by explicit source mapping and validation checks.

Pending Tasks

  • Inspect the China AidData workbook sheets and confirm the real primary data table.
  • Extract the verified sheet(s) into clean CSV staging files.
  • Build the explicit source→canonical column mapping and coverage report.
  • Implement validation scripts to detect broken mappings or missing required fields.
  • Continue the broader Eric Charlotte project continuity once source alignment is stabilized.

Evidence

  • source_file=2026-06-28.sessions.jsonl, line_number=4, event_count=0, session_id=9531a72b5aefe7d1fbfa50c7e9c63cbfc9abd61ea82042f6b9af7e2d1a7511cf
  • event_ids: []

Graph View

Backlinks