1 Introduction
In recent times there has been a movement toward Open Data, particularly for government
data1,2 (which also falls under the purview of Open Government). The reasons cited for
these are typically intangible3,4,5, but it is easy to appreciate how such benefits can arise.
Of course, Open Data includes more than just government data, such as data arising from
academic research (which also falls under the purview of Open Research), but the vast amount
of data openly available from governments around the world make it an ideal low-hanging
fruit for initial inquiry.
This Literature Review aims to provide an Overview of Open Data in New Zealand
giving particular focus to New Zealand State Sector sources. The intent of this review is not
to evaluate the performance of the New Zealand government and its organisations’ release
of data, but instead to understand the current situation such that we may better grasp
what potential barriers exist that may hinder the utilisation of Open Data. In the process
we become entangled in some policy issues and at times give thoughts on what would be
ideal from our perspective; however such comments are intended primarily to aid in the
understanding of the current situation, rather than evaluative remarks on current practice.
To do this we will:
1. Define Open Data (Section 2), including key desirable properties and terminology relevant
to the discussion. In doing so we must delve into some policy and procedure issues,
as they are relevant to understanding what makes for Good Open Data.
2. Provide an Overview of Open Data in New Zealand State Sector sources (Section 3).
The State Sector organisations covered are those listed as Public Service departments
on the State Services Commission’s website6
, which includes many of the organisations
the general public will be aware of, such as the Ministry of Health or Inland Revenue.
While effort has been made to keep this review up-to-date with recent changes, due to
the nature of the subject many details become out-dated at an alarming rate. Many of the
points made in the various summaries should remain valid, but the particulars may no longer
apply at the time of reading.