State of Open Data

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. 

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. 

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 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 looking ahead.

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. 

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.

Changes in open land data collection and use have been evolutionary, rather than revolutionary. Going forward, there are several key challenges that need 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. 

In most countries, 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. 

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

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. 

In 2019, the State of Open Data 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 pretty much the same.

This update to the 2019 State of Open Data chapter on telecommunications takes stock of notable developments in the last four years, including progress on an open fibre data standard to help organizations produce high quality, reusable, and open data about fibre networks.

This update reiterates the importance of open education and open data communities in driving the advancement of critical data literacy, describing open data as an open educational resource, a tool to explore how data is being created, curated, analyzed, and communicated to develop the scientific, policy-making, and civic participation skills needed in an increasingly datafied society.

In the 2019 State of Open Data report, data literacy 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 explores the move from binary to intersectionality - the main development in open data and gender in recent years. It uses a power dynamics lens to analyze this change and looks at three main components: data publication, data use, and decision-making. 

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.