Open Data Environment (DE0003)

Description: Identifying and reducing shortcomings and unresolved questions to establish a reliable open data ecosystem. Communicating with stakeholders to promote the use and quality of open data. Aim: To promote the provision of open data, intensifying dialogue with the research community, civil society, businesses and international partners by discussing the need for open data, improving the quality of publication and sharing experiences. Status quo: The open data legislation will significantly increase the amount of data provided by public administration. However, good, useful open data services rely not only on quantity but also on quality. By participating in OGP, Germany has committed itself to the principles of open and transparent government. In addition to accumulating knowledge in public administration, dialogue with civil society and international exchange therefore play an important role. To ensure a balanced approach which is in line with other countries’ practices of providing data, we need to identify and effectively overcome existing shortcomings and clarify unresolved questions. Ambition: The Federal Government wants to become a pioneer in the field of open data. Existing potential for improvement must be identified and shortcomings must be reduced. Action should be tailored to the users’ needs. New or ongoing: new Implemented by: Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) Organizations involved in implementation: - Organizational unit and contact: Division O1, O1@bmi.bund.de Open government values addressed: Transparency, innovation Relevance: Open data create transparency and are therefore a basis for open government

3. Promoting the Open Data Environment

Language of the commitment as it appears in the action plan:

“Identifying and reducing shortcomings and unresolved questions to establish a reliable open data ecosystem. Communicating with stakeholders to promote the use and quality of open data.”

Milestones:

3.1 Evaluating the recommendations for action made in the study “Open Government Data Deutschland” (Klessmann et al., July 2012)

3.2 Establishing an informal dialogue to discuss legal, technical and organizational challenges when publishing government data

3.3 Analysing possibilities to improve open data rankings, e.g. OD Barometer (World Wide Web Foundation), Open Data Index (OKF), OURData Index (OECD) and ODIN (Open Data Watch)

3.4 Carrying out or participating in workshops with civil society, associations, journalists, start-ups and researchers to promote re-use, assess needs and improve data quality

3.5 Analysing the International Open Data Charter from a German perspective

3.6 International experience-sharing, e.g. by contributing to the OGP Open Data Working Group and continuing DACHLi (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein) talks

Start Date: July 2017

End Date: June 2019

Context and Objectives

This commitment aims to “promote the provision of open data, intensifying dialogue with the research community, civil society, businesses and international partners by discussing the need for open data, improving the quality of publication and sharing experiences.” [11] This action is premised on the view that “dialogue with civil society and international exchange . . . play an important role” [12] in enhancing the quality and user-centric nature of data provided using international best practice in this area. Civil society and international policy actors are carrying out robust diagnostic exercises and cross-country open data performance assessments. It is sensible to ensure that Germany fully benefits from the evidence collected and from the experience and expertise of civil society.

The commitment’s premises and ambitions make it relevant to OGP values. It aims for civil society and the broader community of practice to engage with the government and administration on open data. The commitment adopts an eco-system approach that acknowledges the indispensable—and, if approached well, synergistic—interplay between open data users and providers. This approach aligns with evolving thinking on how to make open government and open data most effective and impactful. The international and comparative outlook is, in the IRM researcher’s view, well suited to maximize learning and cross-fertilization opportunities. Additionally, the commitment could help identify gaps in data provision and other shortcomings. These characteristics make the commitment relevant not only to access to information, but also to civic participation.

The milestones comprise many important activities. They cover the review of practical action taken in response to an analysis of the technical, organizational, and legal environment of open data in Germany (3.1). In addition, they outline several activities to analyze and engage actively with exercises that evaluate and help advance the open government and open data agenda (3.2–3.5). The milestones also reaffirm the commitment to cross-country dialogue (3.6). However, the milestones lack specific implementation details, such as specific output formats or quality parameters.

If executed to high standards of rigor and quality, and if translated into effective follow-up action to fill the identified gaps and shortcomings, this commitment could be a building block for transformative impact. As it stands, however, it is rated as moderate due to the lack of specificity and a missing pathway for taking follow-up action.

Next steps

The IRM researcher recommends making these commitments and their follow-up an integral part of the next action plan. In the short term, the IRM researcher suggests adding output formats (e.g., a publicly available and discussable synthesis report that outlines learnings, priorities for improvement, and concrete recommendations on how to address them). This inclusion should also entail outlining follow-up actions. Such action should create confidence in and accountability for the full consideration of lessons learned and insights gathered in the next action plan and the federal government’s broader activities on open data. For example, these follow-up items can be listed in the form of a “next-steps” brief with a timeline.

[11] Federal Government of Germany, First National Action Plan 2017–2019, July 2017, 13, https://www.opengovpartnership.org/documents/germany-action-plan-2019-2021/.

[12] Ibid.