Open Data and Subnational Governments: Lessons from Developing Countries

Abstract

Much of the discussion in open government data, especially in developing countries, is at the national government level. However, in decentralized contexts, the local is where data is collected and stored, and when published, can generate impact.  This synthesis paper refocuses the discussion of open government data to local contexts by analyzing nine country papers produced through the Open Data in Developing Countries research project. The study found out that there is substantial effort on the part of sub-national governments to proactively disclose data and that local context demands different roles for intermediaries and different types of initiatives to create an enabling environment for open data use and achieve impact.