New partnership seeks to bring benefits of open data to developing countries

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND: The World Bank has joined forces with the Open Data Institute and the Open Knowledge Foundation in a 3-year project designed to help policy makers and citizens in developing countries understand and exploit the benefits of open data.

The project, launched today at the Open Knowledge Conference in Geneva, has three objectives: supporting developing countries to plan, execute and run open data initiatives; increasing the use of open data in developing countries; and growing the evidence-base on the impact of open data for development.

Amparo Ballivian, lead economist at the World Bank said: "Open data has already brought extraordinary benefits to people in rich countries, helping them to understand and improve the world around them. This project will take the benefits of open data to the developing world. It will explore and extend the frontiers of open data and harness its benefits for poverty reduction."