On May 15, 2019 Transparency International Latvia (Delna) started the activities for a new project aimed to empower Nordic and Baltic NGOs’ in their role of promoting disclosure of anti-corruption-related datasets.
The work is funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers office in Latvia within a project “Building a Nordic Anti-Corruption Data Ecosystem”. The project will be implemented in cooperation with leading organizations in the region – Transparency International Lithuania and Open Knowledge Sweden. All three organizations aim to build constructive relationships with officials in all three countries and contribute to usage of open data for effectively preventing and combating corruption.
The activities will run till October 15, 2019 and will include:
- Explorative online surveys to map demand for anti-corruption-related data in 7 Nordic and Baltic countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway);
- Identification of a basic inventory of anti-corruption-related data systems (i.e. those related to individuals and organizations, public resources, laws and regulations) which could be employed for further anti-corruption action at the national and regional level;
- Workshop with anti-corruption and data-oriented NGOs from the region to develop a shared advocacy strategy for the release of public sector datasets which can be useful to fight political corruption – namely those related to lobbying, MPs’ interest and asset disclosure, political financing, public procurement and beneficial ownership.
The project is a follow-up to Transparency International Latvia’s/Delna’s (TI Latvia) efforts to raise awareness about open data in Latvia and the Baltic Sea region. Whereas previously TI Latvia and partners looked at the supply-side of anti-corruption data, this project will focus on the demand-side and the emerging impact of Open Government Data (OGD) policies in Nordic and Baltic countries. In particular, it will seek to better understand challenges and enabling conditions for the successful implementation of OGD initiatives to fight corruption, in particular those advanced through the Open Government Partnership.
In the long term, the project aims to contribute to the integration between anti-corruption and open data agendas in the Nordic-Baltic region and strengthen NGOs network cooperation on common anti-corruption related priority areas.
* According to Open Knowledge’s Open Definition, Open Government Data is ‘digital data that is made available in machine-readable format and with legal characteristics necessary for it to be freely used, reused, and redistributed by anyone, anytime, anywhere.’
ENDS:
- More information about the project “Building a Nordic Anti-Corruption Data Ecosystem”: https://delna.lv/lv/informacija-par-delnu/projekti/pretkorupcijas-datu-ekosistemas-veidosana-baltija-un-ziemelvalstis/
- TI Latvia’s research “Open Data and the Fight Against Corruption in Latvia, Sweden and Finland” (2018): https://delna.lv/en/2018/11/22/new-publication-open-data-and-the-fight-against-corruption-in-latvia-sweden-and-finland/
- TI Latvia’s info page about open data as a tool, to fight corruption: https://delna.lv/en/2018/10/08/open-data-is-an-importan-tool-in-the-fight-against-corrption/
FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT
Antonio Greco, Project Manager, Transparency International Latvia / Delna
Ph: +371 67285585
.
This publication was developed with the financial support from the Nordic Council of Ministers. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of the coordinators of this project and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Nordic Council of Ministers.
