Data Sharing Principles in Developing Countries
Data Sharing Principles in Developing Countries
Data Sharing Principles in Developing Countries
The
Nairobi
Data
Sharing
Principles
were
developed
by
participants
of
the
CODATA
Workshop
on
Open
Data
for
Science
and
Sustainability
in
Developing
Countries
held
on
6-‐8
August
2014
at
UNESCO
in
the
United
Nations
Offices
in
Nairobi,
Kenya.
All
publicly
funded
data
and
information
have
public
good
characteristics;
they
cannot
be
depleted
with
use
and
it
can
be
inefficient
to
restrict
access.
The
value
of
data
and
information
generally
increases
with
their
reuse
by
others.
These
characteristics
are
particularly
strong
for
public
data
and
information
generated
by
governments
and
by
activities
outside
government
that
are
publicly
funded,
including
in
research.
This
is
because
both
the
data
or
information,
and
the
public-‐sector
activities
that
generated
them,
are
undertaken
with
public
money
and
in
the
public
interest.
Data,
or
factual
information
that
has
been
created
or
collected
in
a
structured
database
or
compilation
of
information,
are
particularly
valuable
to
share
(i.e.,
make
openly
available)
on
digital
networks.
Since
the
advent
of
the
internet,
many
studies
have
shown
that
open
data
online
have
economic,
social,
educational,
and
research
values
that
can
greatly
benefit
society
and
the
progress
of
science
and
technology.
However,
data
and
information
strategies,
policies
and
management
have
not
kept
pace
with
scientific
and
technological
changes.
The
practice
of
data
sharing
has
not
kept
pace
with
the
technological
ability
to
do
so.
Less
economically
developed
countries
and
those
with
emerging
economies
have
much
to
gain
from
the
formation
of
open
data
policies
in
the
public
sector
and
devising
mechanisms
for
their
implementation.
In
addition
to
the
general
values
that
are
inherent
from
open
access
and
reuse
of
data,
schools,
universities,
research
organizations,
governments,
and
of
the
entire
societies
in
the
developing
world
can
improve
governance
and
decision
making,
empower
and
educate
citizens,
promote
capacity
building,
and
generally
increase
the
opportunities
for
innovation
and
the
return
on
public
investments.
It
is
not
possible
for
nations
in
the
developing
world
to
reach
the
post-‐2015
U.N.
Sustainable
Development
Goals,
to
play
an
equal
role
in
international
cooperation
programs,
and
to
close
the
digital
divide
without
such
data
and
information
policies.
Moreover,
governments,
foundations,
and
in
some
cases
even
the
private
sector
should
open
their
data
as
much
as
possible
for
the
public
welfare
of
users
in
developing
countries.
All
these
justifications
and
issues
will
be
elaborated
in
greater
detail
in
accompanying
Guidelines.
Data
Sharing
Principles
in
Developing
Countries
It
is
for
these
reasons
that
we,
the
participants
in
the
International
Workshop
on
Open
Data
for
Science
and
Sustainability
in
Developing
Countries,
agree
on
the
following
ten
Data
Sharing
Principles
in
Developing
Countries,
which
we
also
refer
to
as
“The
Nairobi
Data
Sharing
Principles”:
Data
generated
with
public
support,
including
those
of
private,
charitable
foundations,
should
be
openly
accessible
and
subject
to
unrestricted
(re)use,
absent
specific,
justified
reasons
to
the
contrary
(see
Principle
10).
Openness
is
especially
beneficial
for
development
purposes,
and
for
educational
and
research
uses,
but
can
benefit
all
society
equally
and
have
a
multiplier
effect
on
the
economy.
In
most
cases,
any
cost
for
access
is
an
insurmountable
barrier
to
users
in
the
developing
world.
Therefore,
data
should
be
free
online
to
the
user.
In
some
special
cases,
access
to
data
may
be
no
more
than
the
marginal
cost
of
fulfilling
a
user
request.
At
the
same
time,
it
is
recognized
that
adequate
preparation
and
open
availability
of
data
require
sufficient
financial
support
(see
Principle
7).
Data
should
be
of
known
quality
and
integrity,
and
should
be
organized
and
described
(with
metadata)
in
datasets
sufficient
to
allow
them
to
be
understood
and
effectively
(re)used
by
others.
Baseline
technical
and
management
standards
need
to
be
established,
especially
in
the
developing
world
where
state-‐of-‐the
art
practices
are
not
yet
as
prevalent.
Adequate
preparation
and
the
use
of
non-‐proprietary
software
and
formats
are
especially
important
for
any
datasets
expected
to
have
long-‐term
value.
Once
datasets
are
sufficiently
informative
and
quality
controlled,
they
should
be
released
as
quickly
as
possible.
This
can
be
done
in
steps,
starting
with
the
metadata
to
avoid
duplication.
In
some
cases,
such
as
public
emergencies
and
disasters,
open
release
of
relevant
data
should
be
an
immediate
priority.
In
other
cases,
such
as
research,
data
should
be
openly
available
no
later
than
upon
the
publication
or
patenting
of
results.
Users
in
developing
countries
have
the
most
to
gain
from
such
policies.
Upon
the
public
release
of
any
dataset,
the
provider
should
promote
ease
of
access
by
the
broadest
user
base.
Diverse
means
of
publication
should
be
considered
in
recognition
of
potential
connectivity
and
other
technological
challenges.
2
Data
Sharing
Principles
in
Developing
Countries
To
facilitate
reuse
and
combination
with
data
from
one
or
more
other
datasets
(e.g.,
in
geospatially
referenced
research),
special
attention
should
be
given
to
making
data
technically,
semantically,
and
legally
interoperable.
The
life-‐cycles
of
all
datasets
should
be
planned
at
the
outset
with
support
sufficient
to
successfully
implement
the
first
six
Principles.
The
lower
availability
of
funding
in
developing
countries,
especially
for
long-‐term
preservation,
makes
this
a
key
priority
so
that
valuable
datasets
remain
intelligible
and
are
not
lost
or
in
need
of
rescue.
Consistent
with
Principle
2,
cost
recovery
for
data
archiving
and
availability
should
not
be
borne
by
the
immediate
users,
but
by
other
entities
in
the
data
lifecycle.
A
significant
incentive
for
the
open
disclosure
and
publication
of
a
dataset
is
the
ability
to
properly
cite
and
attribute
the
contributor(s),
whether
internal
or
external
to
an
organization.
Any
subsequent
user
of
the
data
has
at
least
an
ethical
obligation—and
possibly
a
legal
one—to
cite
and
attribute
the
source
of
the
data
whenever
they
are
reused,
and
not
to
misuse
the
data
in
any
way.
Such
practices
can
also
improve
the
integrity
of
the
datasets
made
available
by
the
contributors,
in
support
of
Principle
3.
Data
contributors
in
the
developing
world
require
greater
recognition
and
rewards
for
such
disclosure,
and
this
should
become
common
practice.
Open
access
and
use
of
data
in
developing
countries,
especially
for
public
purposes,
should
be
supported
by
the
governments
and
institutions
in
the
more
economically
developed
nations.
Capacity
building
of
essential
experts
and
infrastructure
in
developing
countries
should
be
a
priority
of
international
organizations.
Similarly,
experts
in
developing
countries
should
join
and
actively
participate
in
the
relevant
regional
and
international
organizations
to
exchange
skills
and
knowledge.
10) Data may be restricted for a limited time, if adequately justified
Restrictions
may
be
placed
on
access
to
and
uses
of
publicly
funded
data
and
datasets
for
specified
periods
of
time.
Justified
restrictions
may
include
specific
protections
of
national
security,
personal
privacy,
intellectual
property,
confidentiality,
and
other
values,
such
as
indigenous
peoples’
rights
or
location
of
endangered
species.
Nevertheless,
the
default
rule
should
be
one
of
openness,
consistent
with
Principle
1,
and
any
restrictions
should
be
minimized
to
the
extent
possible.
3