Open Data Barometer: “Georgia jumps 20 places to become a top 5 regional champion”

Georgia has 0.4 more points this year and is number 11th among 43 European countries. Photo by N. Alavidze/agenda.ge.
Agenda.ge, 24 Jul 2017 - 16:00, Tbilisi,Georgia

The Open Data Barometer, a global measure of how governments are publishing and using open data, says in its most recent survey that "Georgia has made significant strides, jumping 20 places to become a top five regional champion.”

It has fully open education, crime, environment, and budget data, and has robust data protection and detailed Right to Information and Freedom of Information laws.

The government has also increased support for open data innovation and training. The impact of open data on accountability and transparency has also increased,” the survey reads.

This regional snapshot of the Open Data Barometer covered 18 countries in the Western Balkans, South Caucasus, Western Commonwealth of Independent States and Central Asia.

  • The top five ranked countries — Russia (global rank-25, score-49), Moldova (global rank-31, score-44) , Georgia (global rank-40, score-37), Turkey (global rank-40,score-37) and Ukraine (global rank-44, score-36) — have all seen marked improvements in their Barometer scores in recent years, the survey reported.
  • The survey added that many countries in the region "are not yet unlocking benefits from broader open data initiatives.”

    Produced by the World Wide Web Foundation as a collaborative work of the Open Data for Development (OD4D) network and with the support of the Omidyar Network, the Open Data Barometer aims to uncover the true prevalence and impact of open data initiatives around the world.

    It analyses global trends, and provides comparative data on countries and regions using an in-depth methodology that combines contextual data, technical assessments and secondary indicators.

    The Barometer ranks governments on:

    • Readiness for open data initiatives.
    • Implementation of open data programmes.
    • Impact that open data is having on business, politics and civil society.