State of Open Data

Series 3 of the roundtables will be hosted from April 13-20, 2023 to gather further perspectives on the impact of open data around the world.

This series of roundtables took place November 2-4 in 2022 and brought together experts to discuss the state of data and recent developments in Education, Corporate Ownership, Crime and Justice, Agriculture, and Land Ownership. 

This series of roundtables took place June 22-24 in 2022 to gather perspectives on the recent use and impact of open data around the world - focusing on national statistics, artificial intelligence, climate action, gender equality, and anti-corruption. 

While there has been a slow down in the open data movement, we are observing the emergence of a greater understanding of the wider data spectrum and innovative data use. 

This update on the State of Open Data chapter on Latin America and the Caribbean outlines how the data agenda has changed in the region and points to the challenges and opportunities of the future.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the collection, sharing, and use of health data. This update explores the lessons learned from the pandemic and provides an overview of progress in key action areas, such as data interoperability and health governance. 

Changes in open land data collection and use have been evolutionary, rather than revolutionary. Going forward, there are key challenges to be addressed, starting with the need to enhance the capacity of local data custodians to manage their data.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping our world. From supply chains, insurance claims, and hospital care to welfare, content moderation, and climate action, data-hungry AI systems are being deployed to drive research, shape policy, and make day-to-day decisions. 

This update to the State of Open Data Corporate Ownership chapter focuses on how beneficial ownership transparency has progressed to identify trends, emerging good practices, and mid- to long-term challenges.

This update looks at the development of open data measurement over the past five years, combining a review of global rankings methods with a review of academic and grey literature on open data measurement.

This update outlines the big challenges for open climate data, why we need it, what data is available, and where the big gaps and opportunities lie when looking ahead.

This update to the 2019 State of Open Data chapter outlines what has happened in the Indigenous Data Sovereignty space in the last four years and highlights the challenges and priorities for the future. 

This update aims to contribute to a deepening of the 'Third Wave of Open Data' and highlights the significance of open data at the subnational level as a more direct and immediate response to the on-the-ground needs of citizens.

This update to the chapter on Sub-Saharan Africa traces the progression of open data activities on the continent. Focusing on the last four years, it examines the varying opportunities and challenges faced by open data actors in Africa. 

This update to the Privacy chapter looks at how digitization amplifies privacy risks in the context of the growing demand for access to a broad range of government data.

This update argues that after more than a decade of work generating commitments to development and humanitarian aid transparency, we are also now encountering cynicism and fatigue on many fronts.

This update takes stock of the development of data-driven transport tools and open data driven approaches to transport data and outlines the challenges that remain in the way of fulfilling the true potential of open transport data.

This update reiterates the importance of open data in driving the advancement of critical data literacy and stresses the use of open data as an open educational resource in an increasingly datafied society.

This update explores the move from binary to intersectionality - the main development in open data and gender in recent years - and uses a power dynamics lens to examine three main components: data publication, data use, and decision-making. 

In the 2019 chapter on Data Literacy, it was addressed as one of the key challenges to the success of the open data movement. In 2022, the challenge remains, though there have been important developments and advances in data literacy. 

This chapter update describes the efforts, improvements, and continuing challenges that have taken place in open data in agriculture over the last four to five years in connecting stakeholders, ethics, capacity, policy-making, and standards. 

National Statistical Offices have led the work on open data, setting an example for other national data producers. However, despite the widespread adoption of open data standards, recently progress in some countries has slowed or even been reversed. 

In 2019, the chapter on South, East, and Southeast Asia reported that open data initiatives in the region were primarily focused on supply-side interventions. Four years on, things remain much the same.

This update to the 2019 chapter takes stock of notable developments over the last four years, including progress on an open fibre data standard to help organizations produce reusable, and open data about fibre networks.

The availability of open data on crime and justice plays an essential role in driving justice provision. The relevance of open data is linked to its potential reuse aimed at fostering access to justice and tackling existing legal needs. 

We must develop locally-led strategies for improving the availability of data for accountability and anti-corruption purposes. Strategies need to advance binding requirements for data publication.