Posts Tagged ‘open data’
-
17 December 2012
Kenyan Minister Looks to Compel Publication of Data
The minister responsible for Kenya’s open data portal says government agencies are failing to supply necessary data, according to a report by in The Sunday Nation. “Information and Communications permanent secretary Bitange Ndemo told the Sunday Nation that the ministry was getting frustrated because of the low amount of data supplied by organizations,” according to […]
-
26 November 2012
United Kingdom Consults on Datasets Disclosure Code
The British government has begun a consultation on its code of practice on government datasets. “The proposed new Code of Practice (datasets) was drafted in conjunction with the Cabinet Office, The Information Commissioners Office, The National Archives, and The Ministry of Justice and sets out what we mean by the terms in the new sections […]
-
26 November 2012
FOI Notes: Requester Privacy, Aid Transparency, Open Data, Jobs, More
Privacy for Requesters?: “Protecting the Freedom of Information Act Requestor: Privacy for Information Seekers,” an article by Sarah Shik Lamdan in the Kansas Journal of Law & Pubic Policy, Vol. 21, p. 221, 2012. The abstract says: FOIA requests are one of the foremost tools of American democracy, a primary means for assuring government transparency. […]
-
21 November 2012
Chile Encourages Agencies to Publish Data on New Portal
Chile’s General Secretary of the Presidency has announced an Open Government Presidential Directive establishing an open data policy and encouraging governmental institutions to proactively publish their data and information. The announcement mandates that open government data must be published on a portal: http://datos.gob.cl/ The directive by President Sebastián Piñera “marks an unprecedented commitment” to the […]
-
21 November 2012
FOI Notes: African Model Law, Music, Jobs, Open Data
African Model Law: A posting on the Open Society Foundations website by Maxwell Kadiri & Chidi Odinkalu describes the effort to create a model RTI law for Africa. The report says that Pansy Tlakula, the Human Rights Commission’s special rapporteur on the right of access to information “has delivered” on the project begun in 2010. […]
-
19 October 2012
FOI Notes: Access for Foreigners, Bangladesh, Data
International FOI: “Rights of Foreigners in Access to Information Laws – a Comparative Picture” has been issued by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. The detailed spread sheet (click “download” under graphic on right side) describes access rights in 56 countries. It was compiled by Venkatesh Nayak with input from members of FOIANet. Bangladesh: Research Initiatives, […]
-
5 October 2012
FOI Notes: Photos, Hubs, Jobs, Cases, Reports
Photo Contest: Winners were announced for the photo contest organised by FOIAnet (the Freedom of Information Advocates Network). There were over 120 entries. A total of 1,000 euros will be awarded to the winners.You can see the photos online here: http://bit.ly/2012FOIAPhotos The winners are: 1st place. Photo: “The other access” by Ranaivosoa Tolojanahary from Madagascar. […]
-
1 October 2012
Three Additions to My Open Government Plea
By Stanley Tromp The following article reprinted from The Tyee supplements a previous article by Tromp, who is FOI caucus co-ordinator of the Canadian Association of Journalists. Watching a panel at recent B.C. Information Summit changed my mind on three points discussed in my Tyee essay last week. On Sept. 17, The Tyee posted […]
-
19 September 2012
Open Government? The Dangerous Distraction of Faux Transparency
By Stanley Tromp Tromp is FOI caucus coordinator of the Canadian Association of Journalists. This article first appeared Sept. 17 in The Tyee and is reprinted with permission. The original subtitle was: “While officials disgorge data sets and tweet away, citizens still lack muscle to compel the state to release records.” For citizens, the vital […]
-
14 September 2012
Open Data, FOI Communities Show Signs of Convergence
By Toby McIntosh Small signs are signaling the emergence of more cooperation between two transparency communities – one focused on open data, the other on access to information – whose relationship has been hampered by cultural differences and distinct agendas, according to FreedomInfo.org interviews with activists in both camps. The cultural differences, in part the […]
-
2 July 2012
Sunlight Foundation Issues Open Data Policy Guidelines
The Sunlight Foundation in the United States has issued a 33 point Guidelines for Open Data Policies that also address topics such as exceptions to disclosure and mandated electronic requests. The guidelines are designed to influence government thinking on open data, according to an introduction written by Laurenellen McCann, the National Policy Manager at the […]
-
29 June 2012
UK Issues White Paper on Open Data, FOIA
The United Kingdom on June 28 issued an Open Data White Paper detailing plans for publishing government data, including some mentions of the freedom of information law that led several observers to predict higher fees. While not proposing any changes to the FOI law at this time, the White Paper said that an expanded Code […]
-
26 April 2012
U.S. House Passes Bill on Spending Transparency
The U.S. House of Representatives April 25 easily passed a bill (HR 2416) to standardize the reporting requirements for recipients of federal grants, loans and contracts. The potential uniformity is seen as a way to improve oversight of government spending and was supported by open government advocates and a new industry coalition. The bill would […]
-
13 April 2012
FOI NOTES: MENA, Canada, Open Data, US, UK
MENA: A new newsletter has been started to follow access to information developments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Said Almadhoun, now a human rights officer at the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and an adjunct professor of law at the University of Palestine, writes about “the […]
-
24 February 2012
FOI NOTES: Open Data, FOI Literacy, United States
Open Data: The new version of the Open Data Handbook has been released by the Open Knowledge Foundation. Bangladesh: Three years after passage of the Bangladesh Right to Information Act, 98.2 per cent of the rural population have no idea on how to use it in their daily life, according to a recent baseline survey […]
-
6 February 2012
UK Minister Stresses Tying Aid to Transparency
A top United Kingdom minister Jan. 30 said progress on transparency will be an important factor in British foreign aid decisions. Francis Maude, the Cabinet Office minister, spoke at the World Bank about the ascendency of transparency in the U.K. and internationally. The U.K. is in line to co-chair the Open Government Partnership, a multilateral […]
-
3 February 2012
Ghana Makes Plans for Open Data Initiative
The Ghana government in collaboration with World Wide Web Foundation (WWWF) has announced plans for a Ghana Open Data Initiative to make government data more available. William Tevie, Director General of the National Information Technology Agency (NITA), signed a memorandum of understanding between the government and the WWWF, a nongovernmental organization, in Accra on Jan. […]
-
30 January 2012
UK Issues Responses to Open Data Consultation
The United Kingdom government has posted the almost 500 responses to its consultation on open data. The “Making Open Data Real” effort was launched in August with an October deadline for answers to questions “aimed at informing Government’s strategy to embed transparency and open data as core operating principles of the public services,” according to […]
-
12 December 2011
EC Proposes to Update Public Data Directive
The European Commission Dec. 12 proposed revisions to its 2003 directive on public sector information intended to encourage European governments to make more data available to the public. See the announcement and explanatory information. Other new elements of the proposal, according to the EC explanation, include: All public data that is not covered by one […]
-
21 October 2011
FOI Notes: Open Data, Latin America, ICIC, Morocco, US
Open Data: Material from the Warsaw open government data conference. An evaluation of the state of open data movement by blogger David Eaves. Latin America: A delegation representing the Alianza Regional por la Libre Expresión e Información will present a report Oct. 24 in Washington at a hearing about access to public information before the […]