Mobile phone data for informing public health actions across the COVID-19 pandemic life cycle

This paper describes how mobile phone data can guide government and public authorities in determining the best course of action to control the-19 pandemic and in assessing the effectiveness of control measures such physical distancing. It identifies key gaps and reasons why this kind of is only scarcely used, although their value in similar epidemics has in a number of use cases. It presents ways to overcome these gaps and recommendations for urgent action, most notably the establishment of mixed groups on national and regional level, and the inclusion and support of and public authorities early on. It is authored by a group of data scientists, epidemiologists, demographers and representatives mobile network operators who jointly put their work at the service of the effort to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.