As delegates begin to gather in London for the open government partnership summit, taking place this week, 31 October to 1 November, we thought it time to ask: are all citizens actually benefiting?
The Open Knowledge Foundation lists three benefits of open data: transparency, releasing social and commercial value, and participation and engagement. There is much evidence of the first two, from the likes of Publish What You Fund to Ushahidi, both often cited as examples of how data is increasing transparency and allowing for innovation. Lagging somewhat behind is evidence that the proponents of open government are being intentional about the third strand: participation and engagement.
A potential explanation is what academics at Princeton University have called "a new baseline assumption about the public response to government data". In the 2010 book 'Open Government: collaboration, transparency and participation in practice', David G Robinson, Harlan Yu, and Edward W Felten write: "When government puts data online, someone, somewhere will do something valuable and innovative with it."
But ICT4D researcher, Tony Roberts, challenges that assumption: "Just because data is 'open' it doesn't mean that all social groups have equal opportunity to utilise the data. Data is actually only open to a small elite."
A different perspective that arrives at similar conclusions is the work by the research and development hub, FutureEverything. In a new publication, Smart Citizens (pdf), Drew Hemment and Anthony Townsend argue that "to date, there has been too much focus on the role of large technology companies and governments as the catalysts of technology-enabled progress.
"With this has come an emphasis on top-down solutions, and on centralised, proprietary systems. Efficiency, innovation and transparency are urgent priorities. But something is missing – the aspirations, anxieties and abilities of individuals, communities and small businesses as they struggle to survive, and thrive, in the face of daunting global challenges."
So how do open data initiatives that are seemingly for the benefits of all civilians ensure that they are not just of use to those who are already the most privileged? In developing countries where there is an information and knowledge gap and where the lack of accountability is starkest, how do supporters of open government ensure that it is of value to the voiceless? Join the debate next week on Thursday 31 October, from 1-3pm UK time.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Eliza Anyangwe
Quelle/Source: The Guardian, 28.10.2013
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