Open data sources can play a vital role in development of softwares and applications that require information outside existing databases. As the world becomes increasingly data-driven, businesses are not only gathering and analysing the information from internal sources like CRM software, ERP systems, marketing automation tools, databases, and other repositories, but also from those outside the scope of their organisations.
This data is often referred to as open data and it is derived from movements such as open source, open hardware, open government, open science, et cetera. Open data is essentially large datasets that are available to anyone with an internet connection. Whether it’s you, me or a large business, everyone can access this open data.
Open data and its importance
Open data is generally public data collected by government agencies, banks, independent organisations, and other public agencies. The idea of these organisations is to create an open data source that is free and easy to access for all. As a publicly accessible knowledge for anyone to use, this open data becomes important for individuals, researchers as well as large organisations.
For businesses, in particular, the open data source can be used for predictive intelligence and forecasting. They can also use the data to build predictive models or understand buying patterns for different demographics. Lastly, the data can act as the vehicle for new innovation that uplifts the society. Here is a look at some of the open data sources across the world, in the EU and in the Netherlands.
The World Bank Open Data is the most frequently updated and complete open data source for information on GDP rates, global energy consumption, disbursement and management of global funds, logistics, and more. It offers a massive catalogue with 3,000 datasets and 14,000 indicators covering macrodata, time series statistics, and geospatial data.
The open data from the World Bank is also easy to access and can be downloaded in formats such as CSV, Excel, and XML. All one needs to do to access these data is specify the indicator names, countries or topics and the open data is entirely accessible for anyone.
WHO’s Open Data repository allows the World Health Organisation (WHO) to keep track of health-specific statistics of its 194 member states. The repository organises the data systematically and proved extremely useful during the pandemic.
The repository allows WHO to track mortality or burden of a disease. The data is also usually classified under 100 or more categories and allows users to categorise and analyse them on the basis of themes, category, indicator, and country. Since it is available as an Excel file, the data is much easier to learn and follow.
Data.gov acts as one of the most comprehensive data sources around the globe. It offers information on everything from science and research to manufacturing and climate. The datasets are available in formats such as CSV, JSON, and XML. The metadata is also updated frequently, which leads to transparency and clarity.
Open Data Network can be described as the search engine for open data around the world. It allows users to look for open data using a robust search engine. From there, users can apply advanced filters to their search queries and even pull data on everything from public safety, finance, infrastructure, housing and development, among others.
Google Public Data Explorer is the best place to start exploring open data sources if you are unaware of where to start. Most of the sources mentioned here are consolidated by Google Public Data Explorer and it also offers free access to the Google Dataset Search Engine. Whether you are a student or a journalist, Google Public Data Explorer can be leveraged to create visualisation of public data.
One of the largest repositories of information right now is Amazon Web Services and the cloud platform offers a repository containing public datasets called Registry of Open Data on AWS (RODA). RODA allows users to discover and share the data which is publicly available and offers keywords and common data types such as genomic, satellite imagery and transportation.
European Union Open Data Portal is a one stop shop for all the open data available from EU institutions, agencies and other organisations. Since all the information is published on a single platform, it acts as a vital open data source pertaining to information related to EU policy domains.
The European Union Open Data Portal has almost 14,000 datasets available and can be used to gain insights on energy, education, commerce, agriculture, international issues, and much more.
The UK data service complements data.gov.uk and it is a search engine for recent datasets on social media trends, politics, finance, international relations, and other events happening in the UK.
The Netherland Government Open Data, or the National Data Portal of the Dutch government, is a window into the data made available by the Dutch government. It offers access to data from more than 180 government organisations and almost all the datasets are updated every night. The website also uses the DCAT standard as a metadata standard to exchange data with each other.
The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute is the national knowledge database and data centre for weather, climate and seismology. It offers reliable, independent data focused on the needs of the Netherlands. From the erratic behaviour of weather to soil moving to climate change, the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute offers an accurate picture.