Open Data Trend Report 2016
The availability of open data has doubled in the past year but the increase has been due chiefly to the inclusion of data from Statistics Netherlands on data.overheid.nl. Apart from this, few datasets have been opened up, while many more could be. The government is missing opportunities. These findings are presented in the Court of Audit’s Open Data Trend Report 2016, our third report on open data.
Conclusions
More efforts for open data
Ministries have made more efforts in the past year to increase the availability of open data. The government has carried out a data stocktake, introduced guidelines on the re-use of data and prepared a National Open Data Agenda. Statistics Netherlands’ provision of open data last year doubled the volume of open data available. The addition of its data on data.overheid.nl is an important step in view of its position as a data hub.
Government missing opportunities
Apart from the data from Statistics Netherlands, few other datasets were opened up last year even though a large number of potential datasets were identified. Not everything that can be made available as open data has been.
Recommendations
National information infrastructure could end informal approach
The government has taken positive steps to open up data. In view of the chances it has not taken, however, the Netherlands still has to go to greater lengths if it wants to be a leader in open data. Like the Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, we think a less informal approach is needed to increase the availability of open data. The launch of a national information infrastructure similar to the one in the United Kingdom could also help formalise the approach.
Encourage use through an Open Data Institute
We think the government should also encourage the use of open data. Establishing a Dutch Open Data Institute after the UK example could help.
Response
The Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations and the Minister of Finance were pleased the opening up of government data was making good progress. The government will implement its open data policy and develop a national information infrastructure along the three lines of the National Open Data Agenda (NODA) (identifying potential datasets, opening up data, encouraging re-use).