Open government data publication and use in a developing country: a case of Ghana

Implementing Open Government Data (OGD) increases a government's ability to share data on its activities with citizens in machine-readable formats. OGD improves citizen participation, transparency, accountability and creates impact. By permitting more transparency, OGD helps citizens monitor government activities, which contributes to minimizing corruption. For example, while Also, OGD enables governments to track the impact of their actions; it gives citizens the ability to monitor government activities and critique where necessary. In addition, institutionalizing OGD by governments encourages economic growth and creates employment for citizens. The aim of this study is to examine OGD as a phenomenon in Ghana by focusing on how social factors either constrained or enabled the publication and use of OGD in Ghana. The investigation also examined how these social factors were created and sustained over time, influencing OGD institutionalization. The Structuration Theory was used as the primary theoretical lens to aid in understanding these social factors. In addition, the Structuration Theory was supplemented with concepts from Network Power, Ownership, and the Public Value Frameworks to provide additional theoretical categorization for the empirical findings. This study adopted a qualitative interpretive approach. Data sources for the research included semi-structured interviews, observations, and secondary data. The primary sources of data included Data Users, Data Publishers, Data “controllers,” and beneficiaries. The main findings from the study indicated that despite Ghana's long-standing democracy and being one of the early implementers of OGD, the phenomenon was yet to be institutionalized in the country. Data ownership, data quality, regulatory mandate, data sharing culture, control, and resources were the core social factors that influenced OGD publication. The meanings that actors ascribed to data ownership resulted in establishing and maintaining bureaucratic structures that allowed institutions and individuals to control available data. The actual use of OGD was influenced by social factors such as alliances/network creation, resources, power in networks, informal networks, and data quality assessment. Conversely, factors like alliances/network creation and technological resources acted as enablers that helped data users access the data. Data Users relied on technology and constantly drew upon their knowledge and understanding of technology and social connections to enable them to access and use data. They also relied on their ability to use technology to scrutinize data to ensure that it was of good quality and its use could create an impact or public value. Specific recommendations of this study include the need to use change management strategies targeted at all actors and institutions in the OGD ecosystem; educating and sensitizing actors on the relevance of making data technically available on a single approved web portal; and the creation of a context specific data quality indicators

Assessment of the Public Value of Open Data in Ghana

With rising enthusiasm for Open Data (OD) globally, there has been an expanding requirement for research on the impact this movement has created. Ghana is consid-ered as one of the early Open Data adopters in Africa. The case of Ghana presents an interesting and a unique area of concentration due to the country’s long stand in de-mocracy. The practice of democracy, accountability and transparency has been the core of government development in Ghana since independence in 1957. The research pur-pose is to understand and examine the impact of Open Data from the context of Gha-na from the perspective of created public value. Existing studies in Open Data has focused on the supply-side. These studies have discussed issues relating to licensing, policies, power relationship between government stakeholders and the technological platforms of the phenomenon. Less is however, known of the impact Open Data on citizens and government of developing countries after about four years of embracing the initiative. The research question underlying this study is: What public value has Open Data created in Ghana? To answer this research question, the study adopts a post-positivist methodology and deductively adopts the public value framework as the theoretical lens. With reference to the public value framework the study posits that the major impact of open data in Ghana is related to intrinsic enhancements, steward-ship, quality of life, economic empowerment.With rising enthusiasm for Open Data (OD) globally, there has been an expanding requirement for research on the impact this movement has created. Ghana is consid-ered as one of the early Open Data adopters in Africa. The case of Ghana presents an interesting and a unique area of concentration due to the country’s long stand in de-mocracy. The practice of democracy, accountability and transparency has been the core of government development in Ghana since independence in 1957. The research pur-pose is to understand and examine the impact of Open Data from the context of Gha-na from the perspective of created public value. Existing studies in Open Data has focused on the supply-side. These studies have discussed issues relating to licensing, policies, power relationship between government stakeholders and the technological platforms of the phenomenon. Less is however, known of the impact Open Data on citizens and government of developing countries after about four years of embracing the initiative. The research question underlying this study is: What public value has Open Data created in Ghana? To answer this research question, the study adopts a post-positivist methodology and deductively adopts the public value framework as the theoretical lens. With reference to the public value framework the study posits that the major impact of open data in Ghana is related to intrinsic enhancements, steward-ship, quality of life, economic empowerment

Social Enablers and Constraints Related to the Publication and Use of Open Government Data in a Developing Country

Part 4: The Social Significance of Digital PlatformsInternational audienceThe promise of Open Government Data (OGD) rests on the publication, availability, use and reuse of government data. This research focused on how social factors such as data ownership, network creation and power enabled or constrained the publication and use of OGD in Ghana, a developing country in West Africa. Ghana’s government data was expected to be both legally and technically open. However, socially constructed behavioral patterns and practices such as power, data ownership and network creation played critical roles in influencing the institutionalization of OGD in Ghana. An interpretive descriptive case study analysis helps understand how social processes influenced the institutionalization of OGD publication and use in Ghana. Giddens’ Structuration Theory was used as the main theoretical lens in this study because of its ability to investigate the dynamic interplay between social agency and social structures. Findings from the study indicated that power within Ghana’s OGD ecosystem is associated with legitimatized practices and behaviors such as data ownership, culture and networks

Social enablers and constraints related to the publication and use of open government data in a developing country

The promise of Open Government Data (OGD) rests on the publication, availability, use and reuse of government data. This research focused on how social factors such as data ownership, network creation and power enabled or constrained the publication and use of OGD in Ghana, a developing country in West Africa. Ghana’s government data was expected to be both legally and technically open. However, socially constructed behavioral patterns and practices such as power, data ownership and network creation played critical roles in influencing the institutionalization of OGD in Ghana. An interpretive descriptive case study analysis helps understand how social processes influenced the institutionalization of OGD publication and use in Ghana. Giddens’ Structuration Theory was used as the main theoretical lens in this study because of its ability to investigate the dynamic interplay between social agency and social structures. Findings from the study indicated that power within Ghana’s OGD ecosystem is associated with legitimatized practices and behaviors such as data ownership, culture and networks.http://link.springer.com/bookseries/6102hj2021Informatic