Open Data Watch is an international non-profit, non-governmental organization that works at the intersection of open data and official statistics. It monitors the accessibility and comprehensiveness of official data in over 180 countries and provides practical information and assistance in implementing open data policies and systems. The Open Data Watch team has unparalleled experience in development data and is committed to making open data a global reality in support of Sustainable Development Goals.

Census Data Drives Decision Making

Census data not only provide a count of people in a country, but also information on variables like gender, ethnicity, and income. To better understand the impact of census data on government revenue, political representation, and public programs such as response to the current pandemic, ODW has collected key articles and resources in this special edition.

June 2020

The updated Data in the Time of COVID-19 covers some grim milestones. Tracking online mentions and traffic for coronavirus data, Learning from Coronavirus Data Use and Demand looks at trends in how public conversation about COVID-19 is being driven by data. The weekly updates by ODW and Data2X spotlight the best gender-disaggregated data on the pandemic.

Learning from Coronavirus Data Use and Demand

Accurate, timely data during the coronavirus pandemic guides decisions on limiting transmission and allocating resources. But what are the drawbacks, merits, accessibility, and biases of coronavirus datasets, models and testing? What do we know about uptake of coronavirus data? What can we learn from changing demand for data?

May 2020

As data-driven decision making is critical during the pandemic, ODW updated its special edition of What’s Being Said on COVID-19 (organized by data value chain stages) and also partnered with Data2X to review the gender impact of the pandemic. A virtual ODIN training session for Uzbekistan looked at country-specific ways to improve open data, and a number of new sustainable development data reports appeared.

April 2020

With data availability and openness being so important during the pandemic, ODW regularly updates its special edition of What’s Being Said on COVID-19. In addition, ODW, the UN Statistics Division and GPSDD are working on a new website to support NSO data continuity by sharing guidance, actions, tools, and best practices.