[open-development] Open Data initiatives in Southern Africa

Mon Nov 21 20:46:40 UTC 2011

Hey Adi,

Welcome to the open development list. Great to hear about progress on
SARPAM.

What sorts of datasets have you managed to get opened up so far? What
datasets are the prime targets for you?

I know the Kenya open data portal team are planning some outreach across
Africa in the coming months to pursuade other countries to follow their
lead on open data which could by good in getting buy in at ministerial
levels to open data programmes - I'm not sure which countries the Kenya
team are reaching out to...

The TI/World Wide Web Foundation 'start at the bottom; start in the middle;
start at the top' formula for opening access to data is a good framework
for thinking about the different elements that need to come together for a
good open data project. There is some good learning in the reports at:
http://blog.okfn.org/2011/03/22/the-next-ogd-frontier-low-and-middle-income-countries/

All the best

Tim

On Mon, Nov 21, 2011 at 6:24 PM, Adi Eyal <adi at sarpam.net> wrote:

> Hi All
>
> I am involved in a DFID-funded project called the Southern African
> Regional Programme on Access to Medicines (SARPAM). We are working
> with the SADC secretariat and member states to improve access to
> medicines in the region through strengthening regional institutions as
> well facilitating regional cooperation. One facet of this programme is
> the development of a platform for information sharing across member
> states. My role in the project is to champion the open sharing of data
> across the region so as to encourage inter-state collaboration.
> Already, from the meager data sharing that has taken place, we are
> seeing that procurement agencies in a number of countries are finding
> themselves in a more advantageous position when negotiating with
> pharmaceutical companies.
>
> The process of opening up databases is far from easy however as many
> countries do not have established policies on information sharing and
> it's easier to restrict access than it is to make data available. I am
> reaching out to any other organisations and individuals active in the
> region who may have an interest in this initiative or are involved in
> related programmes of their own and who may want to share insights.
>
> Best Regards
> Adi
>
>
> --
> Adi Eyal
> InfoHub Manager
>
> phone +27 (0)11 880 6993 | fax +27 (0)11 880 6980
> mobile +27 (0)780142469
> skype adieyalcas
> www.sarpam.net
>
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-- 

http://www.timdavies.org.uk
07834 856 303.
@timdavies

Co-director of Practical Participation:
http://www.practicalparticipation.co.uk
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