_Supply and demand of open data in Mexico: A diagnostic report on the government’s new open data portal.

SEPTEMBER 2015JUAN ORTIZ FREULER

_Supply and demand of open data in Mexico: A diagnostic report on the government’s new open data portal.

SEPTEMBER 2015JUAN ORTIZ FREULER

DISPONIBLE EN CASTELLANOhttp://bit.ly/datamxEsp1

Following a promising and already well established trend, in February 2014 the Office of the President of Mexico launched its open data portal (datos.gob.mx). This diagnostic –carried out between july and september of 2015- is designed to brief international donors and stakeholders such as members of the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee, provides the reader with contextual information to understand the state of supply and demand for open data from the portal, and the specific challenges the mexican government is facing in its quest to implement the policy.

The insights offered through data processing and interviews with key stakeholders indicate the need to promote: i) A sense of ownership of datos.gob.mx by the user community, but particularly by the officials in charge of implementing the policy within each government unit; ii) The development of tools and mechanisms to increase the quality of the data provided through the portal; and iii) Civic hacking of the portal to promote innovation, and a sense of appropriation that would increase the policy’s long-term resilience to partisan and leadership change.

Abstract

CitationAuthor: Juan Ortiz Freuler (@juanof9)Design: Gastón Grillo (gasgrillo@gmail.com)

Please cite this report as:Ortiz Freuler, Juan. Supply and demand of open data in Mexico: A diagnostic report on the government’s new open data portal. 2015. http://bit.ly/DataMXEngReport License: CC

AcknowledgementsMany thanks to the two dozen anonymous interviewees who kindly donated their time to make this report possible, as well as those who will contribute through their comments to the open version. To Juan Manuel Casanueva, Sergio Araiza, Indira Cornelio, Mariel García, Haydee Quijano, and the NGO Social Tic for their feedback, contacts and guidance. Carolina Cornejo and Silvana Fumega for their comments. The support of Chevening Scholarships, the UK government’s global scholarship programme, funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and partner organizations. Research for this report was supported in part by the Open Society Internship for Rights and Governance, which is funded and administered by the Open Society Institute (OSI). The opinions expressed herein are the author’s own and do not necessarily express the views of OSI.

Preliminary note

Introduction The Mexican context

i) Access to the Internet ii) Legal framework, and political commitment towards the policy iii) Supply and demand of open government data: an overview

Supply of open data through data.gob.mx Definition Introduction Overview of data supply through datos.gob.mx State of supply of key datasets for Mexico’s development Availability Quality Conclusion and key recommendations

Demand for data Definition Introduction: Access to information petitions as a proxy Demand of data through datos.gob.mx

Stats of visits to portal Insights from Interviews

Conclusion and recommendations to increase data demand

General conclusion and recommendations a) Need to develop a plural and sustainable ecosystem b) Need to create mechanisms to increase data quality c) Importance of fostering civic hacking of the portal

Next Steps

Bibliography

_index

01

02

03

04

05

6

789

10

14

1616161920212325

27272729293131

34343536

37

38

6

This document is an adapted version of the document in Spanish “Oferta y Demanda de datos abiertos en México: Un diagnóstico sobre el portal público mexicano”, a more extensive diagnostic carried out between July and August of 2015 by Juan Ortiz Freuler for Social Tic, a Mexican Civil Society Organization.

Whilst the Spanish version includes sections relevant for the needs and interests of local stakeholders, this document has the objective of informing international stakeholders within the Open Government Partnership, donors, and public officials who are implementing open data portals in other countries, about the state in which the Mexican Open Data portal (datos.gob.mx) currently stands, the characteristics of the communities that surround it. The document also includes a set of recommendations that could help tackle a series of challenges the policy is currently facing.

With the objective of providing an inclusive document, steps have been taken to avoid technical terms, and a glossary is made available for those cases in which a technicality was deemed necessary.1

Aligned with the deliberative spirit fostered by the document, the document has been produced following the standard of Open Research: all the tables generated for the research are available for reutilization in open format2, and both the tables and the document are available online in formats open to comments.

_Preliminary note

Document open to commentshttp://bit.ly/datamxEngComm Document in PDFhttp://bit.ly/DataMXEngReport Tables in open format http://bit.ly/dataMXEng1 Spanish Documenthttp://bit.ly/datamxEsp

1 Open Government Guide. “Glossary”. Accessed September 3, 2015. http://www.opengovguide.com/glossary/ 2 Tables in Spanish were first made available to the public in a format open to comments through Twitter on the 11/8/2015 (https://twitter.com/juanof9). On the 19/8/2015 they were sent by email to 20 data users for feedback. A week later they were sent by email to public servants.

Pr_Links

7

Throughout the past decades technological progress has led to an explosion in the capacity of governments, private companies and individuals to generate, structure, and process information. This phenomenon, together with the dynamization of communications caused by ever-growing access to the Internet, is modifying the relationship between individuals, and between individuals and the State.

In this context, international and national movements for Open Data3 discuss strategies on how to increase the amount of information Governments release.

Though the open data movement promotes the release of information in open formats by every sector, this document focuses on datos.gob.mx, a platform promoted by the Mexican Executive for the release of data from the public administration under its control. It will not analyse the state of data held by the Legislative or Judicial Branches, or similar subnational initiatives. Therefore, this document focuses on a subset within the intersection of the three concepts represented in figure 1, below.

_ Introduction

3 Open Data Definition: See points I to VIII of the Guide for the Implementation of the Open Data Policy: Unidad de Gobierno Digital de la Secretaría de la Función Pública, “Guía de Implementación de la Política de Datos Abiertos”, by Yolanda Martinez Mancilla, Diario Official de la Federación (Distrito Federal, Mexico, 18/6/2015). http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5397117&fecha=18/06/2015 (accessed 20/7/2015)

_Open Data Definition

Public and free

Accessible through the Internet

In open formats, and machine-readable

With licences that allow any use, reuse, reutilization, and redistribution by any person.

Timely

Source: Developed by the author based on the Government’s Guide ( footnote below).

01

Open

Data

Goverment

This Diagnostic

Fig. 1 Source: Elaborated by the author.

8

Before presenting the analysis, it is necessary to place this policy within the wider context of Mexico, particularly in relation to two aspects: i) Access to the Internet; and ii) the legal framework on which the policy rests, and the level of political commitment of the current administration towards it. Lastly, I will provide a sketch of what the intersection between supply and demand could look like.

Since the open data policy consists in making government information available through an Internet portal, the amount of people that –at least formally- have the possibility of accessing the data is a key factor to contextualize the policy. In Mexico around 45% of the population has access to the Internet.

Graph 1. Note: Users are people with access to the World Wide Web. Source: Elaborated by the author using data published by the World Bank 4

The Mexican Situation

_

Access to the Internet

4 Available in open format from http://bit.ly/dataMXEng1 - Data downloaded from the World Bank Databank, available at http://bit.ly/1OiCxl0 (accessed 20/7/2015).

50

45

40

35

30

25

20

15

10

05

01993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Use

rs p

er 1

00

inha

bita

nts

Mexico

World

Latin Americaand Caribean (all income ranges)

Internet Users (per 100 inhabitants)

Year

9

A series of key facts published by the National Institute for Statistics and Geography (INEGI)5 provide further insights:

of people with access to the Internet utilizes it as a tool to find information, which suggests the people already relate the Internet to the function datos.gob.mx aims to satisfy through the same medium.

of households with a computer but no access to the Internet reported lack of economic resources as the main reason for their lack of access.6

Though in States such as Querétaro, Nuevo León, and Federal District the percentage of Internet users is around 60%, in Chiapas it barely reaches 20%, and in States such as Oaxaca, Guerrero and Veracruz it is around 30%. Analysing budget allocations for connectivity becomes particularly relevant to tackle this issue.

The inequality in effective access and use of the Internet requires urgent attention. Government entities are increasingly opening channels to facilitate service provision, the exercise of rights, and the channelling of complaints. Reducing the costs of participation is definitely the path to follow. Nevertheless, in the context of deep inequalities in access and effective use of the Internet, this could lead to stigmatizing inequality: It could create two distinguishable groups based on their capacity to participate in public affairs. One with access to the public debate, and one barred from it. This would not only be unjust; it could stress the social networks necessary for economic development, and eventually erode the egalitarian bases of democracy. 7

Until the current inequality is resolved 8, the government and NGOs need to proactively identify and train intermediaries

67,4%

67,2%

5 INEGI, “Estadísticas a propósito del día mundial de Internet”, May 14, 2015, accessed July 20, 2015, http://www.inegi.org.mx/saladeprensa/aproposito/2015/internet0.pdf 6 Kaplan and De los Rios estimate the cost of broadband in Mexico equals 28,3% of the Mexican minimum wage. Jeff Kaplan and Nagore De los Ríos. Diagnóstico sobre el Estado de Preparación de Datos Abiertos: Preparado para el Gobierno de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos 2013. Accessed July 10, 2015. http://opendatatoolkit.worldbank.org/docs/odra/odra_mexico_complete.pdf7 T .M. Scanlon. “On the Diversity of Objections to Inequality”. In his The Difficulty of Tolerance: Essays in Political Philosophy, (Cambridge: CUP, 2003) 202-18

10

capable of forwarding the interests of excluded populations (such as indigenous communities).9

In first place it is necessary to illuminate the legal framework upon which the policy rests. This is fundamentally composed of three basic pillars:

Executive Decree that establishes the Regulatory Framework for Open Data (acquired force on the 21/2/2015)10

• Regulates the opening of data held by the Federal Public Administration, and State companies.

• Establishes two criteria that should be taken into account by offices to identify which datasets are a priority:

i) Objectives of the National Development Plan11;

ii) Citizen participation, according to stats on access to information petitions, or any other mechanism the office may have in place.

General Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information (reform sanctioned on the 4/5/2015)12

• New wording adopts the definition of “Open Data” included in the Executive Decree (21/2/2015), and establishes that the

8 The National Digital Strategy acknowledges access to the Internet as one of the 5 pre-requisites for an effective open data policy, and the Constitutional reform on Telecommunications, establishes that the Executive will guarantee universal digital inclusion. Nevertheless, in the short term the Government can only mitigate the issues described. See: Decreto por el que se reforman y adicionan diversas disposiciones de los artículos 6o., 7o., 27, 28, 73, 78, 94 y 105 de la Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, en materia de telecomunicaciones. Published in Diario Oficial de la Federación, June 11, 2013. http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5301941&fecha=11/06/2013 (accesed 16/8/2015).9 On the role of intermediaries, see Van Schalkwyk, Francois; Canares, Michael; Chattapadhyay, Sumandro; Andrason, Alexander. Open Data Intermediaries in Developing Countries (2015). Accessed July 23, 2015. http://figshare.com/articles/Open_Data_Intermediaries_in_Developing_Countries/1449222 On Internet 10 Presidential Decree of February 20, 2015, Decreto por el que se establece la regulación en materia de Datos Abiertos, (2015). http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5382838&fecha=20/02/2015 (accessed 16/8/2015)11 Synthesis in English at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXPolicies

_ Legal framework, and political commitment towards the policy

11

entities tasked with guaranteeing compliance with the law shall promote the publication of the required information using open formats. (Art. 52)

Guide for the Implementation of the Open Data policy (published in the Official Journal of the Federation on the 18/6/2015) 13

• Sets the guidelines and standards for the publication of datasets, in accordance to the Executive Decree (21/2/2015).

• Requires obliged entities to:

Appoint an administrator and a liaison with the open data portal.

Identify existing datasets possessed by the entity, determine which ones will be published, and develop a public calendar to that end.

Fig. 2. Source: Developed by the author, based on the “Guide” 14

A peculiarity of the normative framework is that it omits references to the meaning of this policy within the modern conception of democracy. Releasing government data in open formats allows checking that the policies that are being promoted by the representatives are sound, grounded on public interest, and implemented following the objectives that were publicly offered as

Objectives of the Open Data Policy according to the Executive Decree (published 21/2/15)

“Impulse economic growth, strengthen competitiveness, and promote innovation.”

“Increase transparency, accountability, and promote citizen participation.”

“Trigger greater government efficiency and better service provision, in support of the development objectives of good governance and knowledge generation.”

12 Ley General de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información Pública, Texto Vigente. Published in Diario Oficial de la Federación, May 4, 2015. http://www.diputados.gob.mx/LeyesBiblio/pdf/LGTAIP.pdf (accessed 16/8/2015)13 Unidad de Gobierno Digital de la Secretaría de la Función Pública, “Guía de Implementación de la Política de Datos Abiertos”, by Yolanda Martinez Mancilla, Diario Official de la Federación (Distrito Federal, Mexico, 18/6/2015). http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5397117&fecha=18/06/2015 (accessed 20/7/2015)14 Translated by the author. Original text available in Spanish: “Guide for the Implementation of the Open Data policy” (op. cit). http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5397117&fe-cha=18/06/2015 (accessed 20/7/2015)

12

such. Yet transparency and citizen participation are concepts that start to wither when removed from the soil of democracy on which they should be grounded.

In this sense, the open data policy should find fertile soil in a deliberative conception of democracy, where public decisions are not justified merely in the interests of a majority, but through a robust process of public deliberation in which the participation and

interests of all stakeholders are taken into account, in order to design a policy that is based on the best available arguments. The open data policy could be understood as a precondition for robust public deliberations.

Anchoring the open data policy onto a deliberative conception of democracy would provide its implementers with a more appropriate perspective

to judge the urgency to train members of traditionally excluded groups –such as indigenous communities- in the art of data processing, for them to have the same tools as the elites to defend their interests. It would also make apparent the need to articulate with the Ombudsman and the Supreme Audit Institution, since without the data these entities produce only a partial outlook on the country’s social and economic reality would be available. 15

Promoting private innovation and government efficiency –though relevant- should be understood as subsidiary objectives, since they could be subject to revision by a deliberative process.

In terms of political commitment, the following timeline contextualizes the actions of the Peña Nieto administration, which inherited the policy. The timeline includes Open Government, Abrelatam, and Condatos regional meetings, where public officials and activists meet and discuss open data policies. These events play a key role in disseminating good practices, and are perceived by activists and public officials as a forum where they will account for their actions before a specialized audience.faces in implementing open data policies. These events play a key role in disseminating good practices, and are viewed by activists and public officials as deadlines, since it is a forum in which they will account for their actions in front of a highly specialized international audience.

Anchoring the open data policy onto a

deliberative conception of democracy

would provide its implementers with a more

appropriate perspective to judge the urgency

to train members of traditionally excluded

groups, and promote articulation with

Oversight Institutions.

15 On the role of Supreme Audit Institutions in the context of open data policies, see “Conclusiones y balances del encuentro regional OCyGA 2015 en Buenos Aires”, TPA Initiative Blog, June 2015: http://bit.ly/1EglOyV (Google Translated version of post) (accessed 16/8/2015).

13

16 For a more detailed account of these activities, and links to related documents, see “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXEngTimeL

Fig3. Source: several sources 16

Enrique Peña Nieto (PRI) takes over as PresidentTerm: 2012-2018. (No reelection)1st December

Govt. launches “7 Public Challenges“ initiative to

trigger demand. 13th August

Reform of Transparency Law includes call to promote open formats4th May

Govt. launches “Open Data 100 Mexico” to map

companies and NGOs that use open data1st September

Open Data Day event carried out by NGO Social Tic21st February

Decree that regulates Open Government Data comes into effect.21st February

Closing date for users to participate of Datatrón

survey on data of interest16th November

Mexico hosts worldwide OGP summit27-29 October

Mexico’s 2nd OGP Action Plan published: Includes National Portal on Open Data29th January

2012 2013 2014 2015

Govt. launches Open Data Portal

14th February

2011

Mexico joins Open Government Partnership (OGP) under Felipe Calderón (PAN) Presidency1st OGP Action PlanSeptember

23rd June1st Abrelatam regional summit

on open data. Govt. and Civil Society present.

URUGUAY

1th JuneTeams of the “Data

Squadron” from Govt. train public officials on opening

data practices.

18th JuneGovt. publishes “Guide

for the implementation of the open data policy”

[for public servants]

7 - 8 SeptemberRegional summits Abrelatam and Condatos. CHILE

25th NovemberGovt. publishes National

Digital Strategy.

3 - 4 OctoberRegional summits Abrelatam

and CondatosMEXICO

Formalization of a Consultive Council for the implementation

of the Open Data policy6th December

Abrelatam/Condatos

Open Government Partnership

Actions/Policy implementation

Normative Framework

The implementation of datos.gob.mx: A timeline

14

_Supply and demand of open government data: an overviewThe following graph shows the supply and demand of data from the Ministries (“Secretarías”) that conform the Executive Branch, plus 5 key entities. The demand metrics (following the criteria set in the Decree)17 are represented through the axes: The vertical axis shows the Access to Information petitions accumulated by each entity since the current President took office. The horizontal axis shows the budget each entity was assigned for 2015, as a quantitative expression of the National Development Plan. In terms of supply, the size of the circles represent the number of datasets each entity had published through datos.gob.mx by 27 August 2015. Next to each entity’s name there are two numbers: the first one represents the number of datasets published by the entity through datos.gob.mx; the second one represents an estimate of the average monthly visits to its homepage during the past 6 months (in thousands).

As made visible by the graph, there is still a large gap between the demand datos.gob.mx intends to satisfy according to the guidelines set in the Decree, and the supply it has managed to channel through datos.gob.mx to this date. The policy is still in its initial phase, so there are reasons to believe that the new normative framework will trigger an increase in data availability in the short term, though particular attention should be put on those entities that have not yet published any datasets, and currently face great demand, such as the State Workers’ Social Security Institute, and security-related Ministries.

17 i) In chapter 3 I will argue Access to Information petitions shouldn’t be considered a self-sufficient metric for demand. ii) The datos.gob.mx team ran a public consultation. Nevertheless results for each category were too similar to offer any insights. See: “Resultados de Encuesta Datatron” Accessed 20 August 2015. http://datatron.herokuapp.com/.

15

18 Table and cleansed graph available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXEng6 Source “Budget”: Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público, Presupuesto de Egresos de la Federación 2015: Versión Ciudadana, 2015. Accessed July 20, 2015 http://www.transparenciapresupuestaria.gob.mx/work/models/PTP/Home/Ultimas_Publicaciones/PEF_ciudadano_2015.pdf . Source “Access to information petitions”: National Institute for Access to Information (INAI), “Sistema Infomex”. Searches performed August 27, 2015. https://www.infomex.org.mx/gobiernofederal/moduloPublico/filtroRespuestas.action . Source “Available datasets”: Sitio oficial de Datos Abiertos del Gobierno de la República, Searches in http://busca.datos.gob.mx/#/instituciones performed August 28, 2015. Source “Average monthly website visits”: SimilarWeb. Searches performed July 13, 2015. https://www.similarweb.com/

Graph 2. Source: based on several sources 18

50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 250,000 300,000 350,000 400,000 450,000 500,000

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

22,000

24,000

26,000

28,000

Electricity Comission7, 1400

00 , 00

Social Security Institute5, 1900

State Workers’ Social Security0, 1000

Mexican Petroleum63, 860

Presidency19, 190

Attorney General’s Office 1, 160

M. Comunications and transport 6, 660

M. Social Development 108, 270

M. Economy6, 350

M. Public Education7, 6300

M. Interior0, 200

M. Finance and Public Credit7, 200

M. Navy0, 140

M. Environment and Nat. Resources3, 450

M. Foreign Affairs0, 1400

M. Health4, 60

M. Labor and Social welfare 2, 540

M. Tourism 7, 110

M. Agriculture33, 430

M. Agrarian and Urban Development2, 35

M. Defense0, 280

M. Energy8, 55

M. Civil Service 0, 620

State of Supply and Demand of open data from Mexican Ministries and Key Entities (27/08/2015)

According to criteria established by “Decree”

Acc

ess

to in

form

atio

n pe

titi

ons

rece

ived

by

enti

ty(A

ccum

ulat

ed: 1

/12

/20

12

– 2

7/8

/20

15

)

Assigned Budget, 2015 (Gross, in millions of Mexican pesos)

# of datasets published in datos.gob.mx

Visits to website(in thousands)

16

_Definition As portrayed by Fig. 1, individuals, companies, and government agencies can create datasets. This report focuses on the supply of data generated by agencies of the Federal Government that are made available through datos.gob.mx, the Executive’s portal.

_Introduction Before analysing the state of supply of datasets, it is worth mentioning three pre-existing studies.

First, the “Global Open Data Index”, that assesses the state of openness of a series of datasets considered fundamental by the Open Knowledge Foundation. The Index is broader than this diagnostic in that it evaluates the online availability (though not necessarily through datos.gob.mx) of datasets that are generated by the three branches of government; yet narrower in its analysis of quality19. Since the Index is in its second year, it provides a temporal context.

_ Supply of open data through data.gob.mx

02

19 Open Knowledge Foundation. “Methodology.“ Accessed July 28, 2015. http://index.okfn.org/methodology/

17

20 Open Knowledge Foundation. “Mexico.” Accessed July 28, 2015. http://index.okfn.org/place/mexico/21 Open Data Barometer. “Open Data Index”. 2015. Accessed September 4, 2015. http://barometer.opendataresearch.org/22 It must be noted that the Index’s results show that on average for the countries included in the Index, the impact in the social area has been less relevant than all other impacts measured (entrepreneurial data use, government efficiency, economic growth…). It seems, therefore, that tackling this issue should be a greater concern for the open data community.

Open Data Index 2014

Dataset Format Previous (2013) Qualifications

Government Budget CSV 70% 100%

Government Spending xls 65% 65%

National Map WMS, PDF, y otros 70% 90%

Election Results .txt, .xls 70% 70%

National Statistics

CSV, PDF, y otros (depen-diendo del archivo)

70% 70%

Pollutant Emissions

XLS, PDF, y otros 60% 60%

Legislation PDF, HTML 45% 45%

Post Codes/ Zip Codes

n/a 0% 10%

Transport Timetables

n/a 0% 0%

Company Register

n/a 20% 20%

Table 1. Source: Adapted from Open Data Index 2014 20

Secondly, the Open Data Index, by the Open Data Barometer22, which, as the Open Knowledge Foundation Index, takes into consideration data available from all branches of government. In this Index Mexico was ranked 24/86, and is considered to have been progressing over time. Nevertheless, aligned with the concerns reflected in this diagnostic, the Index notices no impact of open data in the social area, which evaluates the impact of open data on the inclusion of marginalized groups, and environmental sustainability.22

18

Fig.4 Source: Open Data Barometer. “Open Data Index”. 2015

Third, it is worth mentioning an Index published by the OECD (2015)23, in which Mexico was ranked above the OECD average in terms of open data.

Fig. 5. Source: OECD (2015)

23 OECD, Government at a Glance 2015. Paris: OECD Publishing, 2015 Accessed section on Open Data August 13, 2015 http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/governance/government-at-a-glance-2015/open-government-data_gov_glance-2015-48-en#page2

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Readiness: Citizens & Civil Society

Readiness: Goverment

Readiness: Enterpreneurs & Business

Datasets: Accountability

Datasets: Social PolicyDatasets: Innovation

Impacts: Political

Impacts: Social

Impacts: Economic

Mexico 24/86 SCORE> 50.09 +9.79

$$$ 1>

KoreaFrance

United KingdomAustralia

CanadaSpain

PortugalNorway

United StatesMexico

ColombiaFinlandGreeceAustria

JapanNew Zeland

OECDGermanyBelgium

ChileDenmarkSlovenia

SwitserlandIreland

ItalyEstonia

NetherlandsSlovak Rep.

SweedenPolandTurkey

0.980.920.830.810.790.780.760.680.67

0.650.640.630.620.600.590.580.550.540.540.510.480.480.430.390.380.350.330.240.13

Mexico

OECD 0.58

19

The OECD Index is based on the answers of public servants of each government to a survey consisting of 19 questions along three dimensions: 1. Data availability on the national portal; 2. Data accessibility on the national portal; and3. Government’s support to innovative re-use and stakeholder

engagement.

Though the research undergone for the present report is enough to endorse the Index’s ranking of Mexico24, there are many qualitative this Index – due to its nature- is incapable of reflecting. Nevertheless, it effectively shows the open data policy is embryonic worldwide.

_Overview of data supply through datos.gob.mxBy 27 August 2015, only 13 of the 23 institutions identified as holding key datasets by a report commissioned by the Government in 201325 had published a dataset in datos.gob.mx26. This could be interpreted as the policy having penetrated only 57% of the key institutions.27

As the following graph shows there has been steady progress in terms of general availability of datasets through the portal. It would seem as if the normative framework is aiding the process, though there are many unobservable variables affecting the pace of data availability, such as the networking performed by the datos.gob.mx team, and internal processes within each entity.

It must be underlined that this graph shows general availability of datasets, without discriminating the value or quality of its content, which will be analysed in the next sections. Nevertheless, it shows there has been steady progress over the past months, and with the recent publication of the “Guide”, there are reasons to believe this process will pick up a quicker pace.

24 Yet recent tweaks could lead to setbacks: Comments section was cut, and the forum has been down throughout the time of this research (July-August 2015). 25 Y Jeff Kaplan and Nagore De los Ríos. Diagnóstico sobre el Estado de Preparación de Datos Abiertos: Preparado para el Gobierno de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos 2013, 10. Accessed July 10, 2015. http://opendatatoolkit.worldbank.org/docs/odra/odra_mexico_complete.pdf 26 Open table available at “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXInstitPenetrat27 The recently published “Guide” (18/6/2015) instructing institutions to establish a calendar for the publication of datasets, should generate a considerable progress shortly.

20

Graph 3. Source: Elaborated by the author base don information obtained through an Access to Information petition28. Note: The number of entities that have published datasets includes State and Municipal entities.29

28 Petition, reply, its analysis and processed data available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Last modified September 4, 2015. http://bit.ly/DataMXPortalStats29 On September 3, 2015 31 Federal Institutions that are part of the Executive Branch, and two autonomous agencies had published datasets through datos.gob.mx30 Kaplan and De los Rios (2015). Table in Open format available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXEngTables31 Systematization at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMxPolicies

_State of supply of key datasets for Mexico’s developmentIn order to perform a detailed analysis of availability and quality of the data published a subset of the almost 500 datasets that were available in datos.gob.mx at the time was chosen. To legitimize the sample, it was drawn following the guidelines contained in a report commissioned by the government to Kaplan and De los Ríos (ODRA) in 201330.

In ODRA the authors include a list of priority datasets and areas based on one of the criteria later included in the Decree to define demand: the objectives of the National Development Plan.31

500

450

400

350

300

250

200

150

100

50

007/14 08/14 09/14 10/14 11/14 12/14 01/15 02/15 03/15 04/15 05/15 06/15 07/15

Ent

itie

s th

at h

ave

publ

ishe

d at

leas

ton

e da

tase

t (p

er m

onth

)

Entities that havepublished at least one dataset (per month)

Datasets available(per month)

Supply of data through datos.gob.mx

Date

Decree that regulates Open Data comes into effect

(21/02/2015)

Reform to transparencylaw includes call to

promote open formats (04/05/2015)

Govt publishes “Guide” for the implementation of the

policy (18/06/2015)

21

The table developed for ODRA rests on 5 pillars:

1. Digital Management of National Territory2. Universal Health3. Quality Education4. Digital Economy5. Civil Security

Each pillar contains 3 to 9 subcomponents (datasets or –more generally in some cases-areas), identified as a priority, and a reference to the entities that possess the data.

For the purpose of this diagnostic the datasets corresponding to “Digital Management of National Territory” were not analysed since the quality standards developed by the government are not applicable to map-related formats.

The following tables synthesise the analysis on availability and quality of the key datasets identified by ODRA. The colour coding follows the rationale of a traffic light. An asterisk is placed on those where there was more than one dataset, and one of them was randomly selected for quality analysis. The “fulfilment indicator” column refers more broadly to the capacity of the available dataset(s) to comply with the implicit objectives of the indicator. 32

Availability

As mentioned in the overview, only 13 of the 23 institutions identified as holding key datasets has published a dataset through datos.gob.mx (27/8/2015).

As shown by the table, though available datasets comply with required formats, many key datasets are yet unavailable through the portal (even though in some cases they exist and are available elsewhere). The provision included in the “Guide” to identify all datasets held by each institution could help solve this problem, if properly followed up.

On the other hand, the table seems to stress the need to motivate and monitor security-related institutions to increase their compliance with the policy.32 The Spanish version of the analysis was sent to interviewed users on 19/8/2015, and to the 98 email accounts of public servants who published datasets through datos.gob.mx on the 25/8/2015. The link was opened 38 times. It was also tweeted using relevant hash-tags. Full analysis available at: “Open Data Mx Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXIndicators

Color Coding

Yes Y

Partially P

No NO

Not Evaluated NE

Not Applicable NA

Table 2. Source: Elaborated by the author following methodology indicated in http://bit.ly/DataMXIndicators

Area Issue Available at datos.gob.mx

Format Fulfilment of indicator

Healthcare Cases of serious diseases*P Y P

Healthcare Sanitary InfrastructureP Y NO

Healthcare Catalogue of sanitary units of careP Y P

Healthcare Professionals per sanitary unitP Y P

Healthcare Patients per sanitary unitP Y P

Education Census of existing schoolsP Y P

Education Exam resultsNO NE NO

Education Population projections by CONAPO*P Y P

Education Rate of graduationsP Y P

Education School expenditures (per school)NO NE NO

Economy National BudgetY Y Y

Economy Actual ExpensesNO NE NO

Economy Access to credit*P Y NO

Economy Registry of companies*Y Y Y

Economy Data about customs officesNO NE NO

Economy Contracts*P Y NO

Economy RoadsY Y Y

Economy Meteorological Data*Y P P

Security Wounded, injured, victims of aggressionNO NE NO

Security Deaths (causes and location) from the Emergencies database

NO NE NO

Security Crime and DelinquencyP Y NO

Security Register of disappearancesNO NE NO

23

Quality The quality of datasets available through datos.gob.mx was analysed by applying the standards included in the “Guide for the Implementation of the Open Data Policy”, published by the Office of the President.33

As developed in the conclusion, the analysis calls for the development of tools to help public officials comply with the new quality standards, since the current situation, where dataset descriptions are –in many cases- poor, and columns are codified, seriously hinder dataset usability, and the achievement of the policy’s goals.

33 Systemized components of “Guide”, and methodology applied available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/dataMXEng1 .

Area Issue Available at datos.gob.mx

Time fields comply with ISO 8601

Clarity of column titles

Quality of dataset descrip-tion

Use of tags

Overview of dataset quality

Fulfilment of indica-tor

Healthcare Cases of serious diseases*

P Y Y P P P P

Healthcare Sanitary Infra-structure

P NA P P Y NO NO

Healthcare Catalogue of sani-tary units of care

P NA P P Y P P

Healthcare Professionals per sanitary unit

P NA P P Y P P

Healthcare Patients per sani-tary unit

P Y P P Y Y P

Education Census of existing schools

P NA NO NO Y NO P

Education Exam resultsNO NE NE NE NE NE NO

Education CONAPO popula-tion projections*

P NA P P Y Y P

Education Rate of graduations*

P Y P NO P P P

Education School expendi-tures (per school)

NO NE NE NE NE NE NO

Economy National BudgetY Y Y Y Y Y Y

Economy Actual ExpensesNO NE NE NE NE NO

Economy Access to credit*P NO NO P Y P NO

Economy Registry of companies*

Y NO Y P Y Y Y

Economy Data about customs offices

NO NE NE NE NE NE NO

Economy Contracts*P NO Y P Y P NO

Economy RoadsY NA NA Y Y Y Y

Economy Meteorological Data*

Y NA NA P Y Y P

Security Wounded, injured, victims of aggression

NO NE NE NE NE NE NO

Security Deaths (causes and location) from the Emergencies database

NO NE NE NE NE NE NO

Security Crime and Delinquency

P Y NO P Y NO NO

Security DisappearancesNO NE NE NE NE NE NO

Table 3. Source: Elaborated by the author following methodology indicated in http://bit.ly/DataMXIndicators

25

Conclusion and key recommendations

The call included in the “Guide for the Implementation of the Open Data Policy” for entities to map all existing databases within their archive will generate a key tool for the analysis of the progress of the policy. It is therefore important for this information to be systemized and made easily accessible to the public.

Though the “Guide” provides clear procedures, and examples to illustrate how progress should be made in the design and standardization of dataset content and metadata, surely unexpected issues will arise for which the current Guide does not provide an answer. It is therefore fundamental to require the appointed liaison and administrator of each institution to keep a log of the identified problems, and how they were tackled. User feedback should also be called for, and systematically recorded. This information would provide the datos.gob.mx team the raw material to develop tailored best practice guidelines and FAQ manuals in a horizontal fashion, which in turn would help foster the community spirit (issue developed in the final conclusion).

Dataset descriptions can still be improved. Defining how to standardize its components could be an interesting task to tackle collectively, and thus kick-start horizontal relations between the communities of supply and demand.

In terms of dataset quality, it is essential for datasets to be accompanied by manuals, dictionaries and/or decoders, particularly when the content of the dataset contains coded, abbreviated or technical information. This point is included in the “Guide” as a recommendation for particular types of resources. However, it should be considered a component as essential and indispensable as the dataset itself, even in those cases in which the title of the columns and the contents are not codified, or when the person who publishes it thinks it self-explanatory, since information such as the methodology, etc. are of great value for users to assess how the data can and should be used. In any case accompanying these documents should be the rule, not the exception.

26

Implementing manual and automatic quality controls before the dataset is made public. Checklists are a cost-effective way of triggering cultural change, and rule internalization, having shown impressive impacts in the areas of aviation and medical practice34. In turn, it would be useful for technology providers (such as CKAN and Junar) to proceed with the design of a tool to facilitate the automatic diagnostic of compliance with machine-identifiable components.

34 The platform could trigger a pop-up when the authorized officer tries to publish a dataset, which requires her to tic a series of boxes by which she confirms that the dataset meets the quality indicators included in the Guide. Each box should contain a question mark that when clicked upon explains what the indicator means and how to verify compliance. On the impact of checklists in medical practice, see National Center for Biotechnology Information. “Safety Checklists in the Operating Room.” Accessed September 3, 2015. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3489073/

27

_Definition This chapter contains an analysis of the characteristics and behaviour of users and potential users of datos.gob.mx

_Introduction: Access to information petitions as a proxy The National Institute for Access to Information (INAI), tasked with facilitating people’s access to public information held by the State, exists since 2003. Since its purpose is –at least partially- juxtaposed to that of datos.gob.mx, and because it collects detailed information about petitioners’ profiles, it offers valuable insights about the profile of prospective datos.gob.mx users.

_ Demand for data

03

Graph 4. Source: Elaborated by the author based on INAI, Informe de Labores 201435

35 O INAI, 12vo. Informe de Labores al H. Congreso de la Unión 2014. Mexico City, 2015. 36. Accessed July 20, 2015. http://inicio.inai.org.mx/SitePages/Informes-2014.aspx. Table in open format available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXEngTables

140000

120000

100000

80000

60000

40000

20000

0

Num

ber

of p

etti

tion

s re

ceiv

ed

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Number of petitions received yearly by INAI

Year

28

The almost constant increase in the number of petitions seems to indicate that as more people learn about the mechanism the more petitions that are filed.

The following table shows that over 70% of the petitions were filed by people who had already filed a petition before. The table also shows a community of serial petitioners who should definitely be targeted by datos.gob.mx. It must be underlined, nevertheless, that this community reflects the economic inequalities of Mexico: In 2014 over 80% of the petitions filed corresponded to users who reported having at least a university degree36. This situation must be taken into account by units that –in following the Executive Decree (see chap 1.ii)- justify the prioritization of certain datasets based on access to information petitions received. If the policy adopts the deliberative democracy outlook, the demand based rationale for prioritizing datasets requires incorporating dialogues with the Ombudsman and other rights-focused entities that could represent the interests of excluded groups.

Number of users sorted by number of accumulated petitions filed between 12 June 2003 and 31 December 20141

Range Number of Users Number of petitions filed Percentage of total petitions filed

One petition 320451 320451 27.7

Two petitions 51005 102010 8.8

3-5 petitions 30938 111483 9.6

6-20 petitions 14813 144106 12.5

21-100 petitions 4045 164133 14.2

101-300 petitions 667 113866 9.8

301-500 petitions 126 48329 4.2

501-1000 petitions 63 43172 3.7

Over 1000 petitions 37 109840 9.5

Total 422145 1157390 100

Table 4. Source: Fumega and Mendiburu (2015) 37

36 INAI, 12vo. Informe de Labores al H. Congreso de la Unión 2014. 36. 37 Silvana Fumega and Marcos Mendiburu, Uso y cumplimiento de la legislación sobre acceso a la información pública: Las experiencias sobre datos de desempeño en Brasil, Chile y México. 2015. Accessed July 10, 2015. http://redrta.cplt.cl/_public/public/folder_attachment/a6/1a/1a8c_c2c4.pdf

29

_Demand of data through datos.gob.mx

Stats of visits to portal

Since the policy is based on a web platform, analysing web traffic can be a valuable source of information about its users. Though these stats should be public since they help identify weaknesses and promote innovation, datos.gob.mx does not currently publish them, and it was necessary to file an access to information petition to access them38.

Graph 5. Source: Elaborated by the author based on data provided by datos.gob.mx through an access to information petitio) 39

38 Petition, reply, its analysis and processed data available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Last modified September 4, 2015. http://bit.ly/DataMXPortalStats39 See previous footnote.

25000

20000

15000

10000

5000

007/14 08/14 09/14 10/14 11/14 12/14 01/15 02/15 03/15 04/15 05/15 06/15 07/15

Vis

its

/ do

wnl

oads

/ S

earc

hes

wit

hin

port

al(p

er m

onth

)

Visits per month

Downloads per month

Searches within portal

Demand for data through datos.gob.mx

Date

Govt. organizes “7 Public Challenges”13/08/2014

Civ Soc organizes“Open Data Day”

21/02/2015

Decree regulating Open Data21/02/2015

Govt. Publishes “Guide” for policy implementation

18/05/2015

30

As shown by the graph, activities such as “7 public challenges”, organized by the government, and “Open Data Day”, organized by NGO Social Tic, seem effective ways of triggering demand, and showcase the portal, helping potential users identify datos.gob.mx as a source of data.

To contextualize the data, estimated web traffic of other national open data portals was gathered through a reputable web app (similarweb.com)40. Since the Mexican portal is the newest one amongst the analysed, as the following table shows, there is much room for progress. It is important to mention the correlation between the OECD Index (that focuses mostly on portal architecture, and good practices), and the number of estimated visitors, though a bigger sample of countries and a regression analysis are required to determine if they are actually related41.

Country (and tech pro-vider)

Percentage of internet

users

Estimation of average portal

views per month in last 6

months

Views/population with access

Ranking views/pop-ulation with

access

Position in OECD Open Data Index

Launch Date

Korea (CKAN) 84,30% 45000 0,002132962868 1 1 NA-12

France (CKAN) 83,80% 110000 0,001982812839 2 2 Dec-11

Chile (Junar) 72,40% 20000 0,001554296399 3 19 Sep-11

USA (CKAN) 87,40% 260000 0,0009329661424 4 9 May-09

Spain (CMS & Federador)

76,20% 20000 0,0005656059535 5 6 Nov-11

Mexico (CKAN) 44,40% 25000 0,0004548195784 6 10 Feb-14

Table 5. Source: Elaborated by the author based on several sources 42

40 In order to minimize distorsions, for the purpose of this table, the data provided by similarweb.com was also used to estimate traffic to datos.gob.mx41 See previous footnote.41 The high demand is most probably due to the development of the countries’ economy, and the high ranking in OECD Index merely willingness to comply with pre-existing standards. Yet, it would be interesting to see how the variables analysed in the Index impact on demand that is not seasonal. More comparisons available at: “http://bit.ly/dataMxEngWebStatsDate of last modification indicated in doc. http://bit.ly/dataMxEngWebStats 42 Full table available at: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/1QbnfA5 Sources: Population estimates and percentage of population with access to the Internet: World Bank. “World Bank Databank”, accessed July 20, 2015, (http://data.worldbank.org/) consulted on July 2015. Source estimated average visits to Ministry’s web portals: SimilarWeb. Searches performed between 29 and 31 July 2015. https://www.similarweb.com/. Source: Ranking of views/population: elaborated by the author based on information from the previously mentioned sources, and takes into account only the 6 portals under analysis. “OECD Index” OECD, Government at a Glance 2015. Accessed 29/7/2015.

31

Insights from Interviews

With the objective of recording users’ perspectives on the portal, 25 professional Mexican data users from NGOs, newspapers and government offices were interviewed.

Though all the interviewed people backed the policy, only one of the non-governmental users reported accessing the portal regularly. Most users had accessed the portal soon after it was launched, and either did not find any data previously unavailable through other portals, or found very low quality datasets. After these experiences the interviewed users stopped consulting datos.gob.mx43.

It seems there is an upfront cost in understanding the portal’s architecture, and developing relationships with contacts in government offices, which leads users to stick to the portals they are used to. Many users also suggested that portals such as INEGI (National Institute for Statistics and Geography) offer live customer service, manuals, and better metadata than datos.gob.mx.

In terms of how the data ecosystem is developed, the relationship between datos.gob.mx and well-established data portals, such as INEGI, CONAPO (Population projections), and “Budget Transparency”, seems to be unclear, and perhaps requires rearrangements. If datos.gob.mx intends to compete with these well-established portals, it would be misplacing energy. Yet the objective of creating a single door to all available data could create tensions with public servants in some of the entities under Executive control, and perhaps a limited cooperation from those who work in autonomous agencies, such as INEGI.

_ Conclusion and recommendations to increase data demand

The analysis included in the section on Demand refers only to existing demand. It is important to underline that this does not encompass all those who could benefit from the policy. As stressed throughout this report, and particularly from a deliberative conception of democracy, it is important to devise strategies to increase and diversify the groups that demand:

43 Providing a notifications service when new datasets are published could help restart conversations with disenfranchised users, whilst complying with the only point highlighted as incomplete by the OECD Index.

32

• Including the excluded groups such as indigenous communities could require revising the Open Data definition included in the Decree, since it currently entails availability of data through the Internet, which –though positive in theory- could limit the scope of possible strategies the datos.gob.mx takes into account when defining where to look for demand. In Colombia, for example, pen drives are used to distribute data amongst those communities with access to computers, but where the Internet is yet unavailable.

• The policy has long-term goals that will only be achievable through long-term strategies that should include agreements on curricula with schools and universities in order to increase the number of people who are able to process and interpret data effectively. 44

A key issue to impulse demand is trust in the data and its usefulness. As was shown through the analysis of a sample of datasets, and through interviews with professional data users, data quality is still a major issue. This was one of the reasons mentioned by users to justify their choice for other sources. Some users mentioned the lack of trust in government data as a more general challenge the policy faces. Aligned with this diagnostic, the OECD’s last report claims only 30% of Mexicans trust their government.45 In this context, it is important for the datos.gob.mx team to identify institutions that are trusted by the people, and incorporate them into the broader policy of promoting open data. Related to this point, it would be useful to integrate mechanisms for users to report on data quality and dataset usability, in order to build upon peer trust, and the trust harvested by other institutions, such as NGOs and newspapers.

Foster the study of dataset quality. The analysis shows that available datasets, at least within the analysed sample, comply with the required formats. It seems it is time for both national and international stakeholders to push the standards a bit further, and include more metrics in their quality analysis. In

44 In Argentina, for example, the Ministry for Education recently passed a resolution to include programming in schools, which will initially be rolled out as a pilot in 300 public schools. Program.ar. “Preguntas Frecuentes sobre la Resolución del Consejo Federal de Educación.” Accessed September 3, 2015. http://programar.gob.ar/faq-consejo-federal-de-educacion/45 OECD (2015), Government at a Glance 2015, OECD Publishing, Paris. Accessed September 3, 2015.http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/governance/government-at-a-glance-2015/confidence-in-national-government-in-2014-and-its-change-since-2007_gov_glance-2015-graph107-en#page2

33

the end it’s dataset quality that determines the use of datasets, and its ability to provide answers or solutions to questions or complex situations. The current structure of incentives –which seems to focus on availability and formats- will give reasons for public officials to dump resources onto the platform to signal high metrics of compliance.

Redefine the portal’s search engine parameter: the portal is going through a process of migration from the basic CKAN design to a design created by the datos.gob.mx team. Though there have been many positive changes, particularly the development of sections that show potential users the value of using data, and the development of visualizations (key elements in a context of relatively low digital uptake), at the time of this diagnostic the search engine seemed to be performing less effectively than the previous one (http://catalogo.datos.gob.mx/dataset). 46

46 See column “N” of sheet 8, “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/1iesQdv

34

A_Need to develop a plural and sustainable ecosystem A data ecosystem should include: • A motivated group of public servants who supply data (from all

branches of government, and oversight institutions); • A plural community of users and intermediaries.

Nevertheless, the defining attribute of an ecosystem is not its actors, but the relationships between them. Public servants who publish the data are currently isolated from each other, and only have a vertical relationship with the Office of the President. This diminishes the potential for innovation and the capacity to impact on the identity of these public servants. In many cases these people are young and new to the units they work in. Being in charge of rolling out this policy -which requires a deep cultural change- will often confront them with more hierarchical officials within their units. In this context, developing a safety net of public servants in the same position as them is fundamental. It would be a step towards giving them a double identity: Members of their unit and promoters of open data. This requires developing their feelings of ownership over datos.gob.mx, which in turn requires a more horizontal structure of relationships. 47

Aligned with this point, almost none of the interviewed users had had any contact with any public servant that publishes data on datos.gob.mx, though they did believe they were part of an active user community.48 It is important for the community of users to

_ General conclusion and recommendations

04

47 See George A. Akerlof and Rachel E. Kranton, Identity Economics : How Our Identities Shape Our Work, Wages, and Well-Being (Princeton University Press: 2010), 53. And: World Bank. World Development Report 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior. Washington, DC: World Bank, 2015. Accessed August 20, 2015. http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/Publications/WDR/WDR%202015/WDR-2015-Full-Report.pdf

35

proactively seek to include the newly appointed public servants to the gatherings they periodically organize.

Through the interviews with public servants it was possible to sense there is still a degree of distrust towards the data activists and NGOs. To breach this wall it will be necessary for the user community to be strategic in its approach. As explained by Fumega49, the open data community generally has a more pragmatic and collaborative approach towards public sector than the access to information communities public servants are more used to.

For these reasons, it is important for the activist community to be wise in how it frames the content and tone of the first engagement events, and for the Office of the President to be willing to adopt a more secondary role as enabler, facilitating the development of a more horizontal network.

The development of relationships between these communities would not only lessen the tension the administrators of datos.gob.mx deal with when acting as a bridge between these actors, but would also provide a more enriching experience for both communities.

B_Need to create mechanisms to increase data qualityCurrently, as shown by Graph 2, datos.gob.mx is not satisfying existing demand for data. Yet the new normative framework will surely increase data availability in the short term.

The interviewed users and the analysis of datasets indicate that data quality is a major issue which if not tackled pre-emptively will require a great deal of cleaning work by each of the data users, which is inefficient. Much more could and should be done by technology

48 See timeline of most important milestones of civil society data-related activities at “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/dataMXngoMilestones . There are also informal gatherings such as “Datos y Mezcales”, usually organized by NGO Social Tic with different partners, where data users present updates on how they have used data for their projects. See for example: Social Tic. “Datos y Mezcales: Los proyectos de #MeetupDF”. Accessed September 3, 2015. http://socialtic.org/post/97317594618/datos-y-mezcales-los-proyectos-de-datameetup-df49 Silvana Fumega. World Wide Foundation. “Freedom of information and open government data communities could benefit from closer collaboration.” Accessed September 3, 2015. http://webfoundation.org/2015/08/freedom-of-information-and-open-government-data-communities-could-benefit-from-closer-collaboration/

36

providers to develop tools such as:

1. Interactive/Smart checklists for those who publish data; 2. Software that automatically detects compliance with standards,

aggregating data on most common errors and units with lowest quality datasets; and

3. Tools for users to report on quality of existing datasets.

C_Importance of fostering civic hacking of the portalMany interviewees had clear ideas of the many tweaks the portal could benefit from. Yet the new API (Application Programming Interface) that would allow experimentation through the creation of mirror sites and plug-ins has not been published by datos.gob.mx.

The International community should establish that the publicity of the API and the portal’s statistics are a basic condition for government open data portals, and support innovation through civic hacking activities.

A key step towards the policy’s entrenchment and resilience towards partisan and leadership change is to create strong and active community that feels it owns the policy. In this sense, once again, it is important for the datos.gob.mx team to be open towards adopting a more secondary role as facilitator. Having placed the team within the President’s Office definitely provides short-term gains by increasing the odds of ministerial cooperation, but it is important to underline datos.gob.mx should not be perceived by public servants or by the people as a partisan or personal project of the President. The policy should be understood as the construction of an institution that will strengthen democracy (whilst simultaneously increasing state efficiency, and providing tools for private innovation). Favouring the possibility for entrepreneurs and activists to participate actively in the portal’s development would, at least formally, increase the chances of having the public identify the portal as a long-term initiative.

37

As the timeline (Fig 2.) suggests, the international community plays a key role in developing the national agenda. As a result of the analysis, it is possible to suggest it promotes the following courses of action:

1_ Tackle both ends of supply

a) High end->Stick: Make visible the impact of Ministers’ political commitment towards the policy by mapping the Ministries and their child agencies, and the number of datasets each publish through datos.gob.mx. (E.g. in footnote50).

b) Low end->Identity: Foster the creation of spaces where public officials who create and manage data interact horizontally, and with users.

2_ Incorporate a greater range of quality indicators within future indexes.

3_ More voices

a) Integrate the Ombudsman and Supreme Audit Institution to the Open Data agenda. b) Proactively identify and incorporate excluded groups and/or their intermediaries to the demand community.

_ Next Steps

05

50 Sketch and matrix for an observatory available through: “Open Data Mx - Graphs and tables.xlsx”. Date of last modification indicated in spreadsheet. http://bit.ly/DataMXObservatory

38

Akerlof, George A., and Rachel E. Kranton, Identity Economics: How Our Identities Shape Our Work, Wages, and Well-Being. Princeton University Press: 2010.

Fumega, Silvana, and Marcos Mendiburu, Uso y cumplimiento de la legislación sobre acceso a la información pública: Las experiencias sobre datos de desempeño en Brasil, Chile y México. 2015. Accessed July 10, 2015. http://redrta.cplt.cl/_public/public/folder_attachment/a6/1a/1a8c_c2c4.pdf

INAI, 12vo. Informe de Labores al H. Congreso de la Unión 2014. Mexico City, 2015. Accessed July 20, 2015. http://inicio.inai.org.mx/SitePages/Informes-2014.aspx.

INAI (National Institute for Access to Information). “Sistema Infomex”. https://www.infomex.org.mx/gobiernofederal/moduloPublico/filtroRespuestas.action .

INEGI, “Estadísticas a propósito del día mundial de Internet”, May 14, 2015. Accessed July 20, 2015, http://www.inegi.org.mx/saladeprensa/aproposito/2015/internet0.pdf

Kaplan, Jeff, and Nagore De los Ríos. Diagnóstico sobre el Estado de Preparación de Datos Abiertos: Preparado para el Gobierno de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos 2013, 10. Accessed July 10, 2015.http://opendatatoolkit.worldbank.org/docs/odra/odra_mexico_complete.pdf

Ley General de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información Pública, Texto Vigente. Published in Diario Oficial de la Federación, May 4, 2015. http://www.diputados.gob.mx/LeyesBiblio/pdf/LGTAIP.pdf (Accesed 16/8/2015)

National Center for Biotechnology Information. “Safety Checklists in the Operating Room.” Accessed September 3, 2015. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3489073/

OECD, Government at a Glance 2015. Paris: OECD Publishing, 2015 Section on Open Data August 13, 2015 http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/governance/government-at-a-glance-2015/open-government-data_gov_glance-2015-48-en#page2

Official Mexican Open Data Portal. Last accessed August 31, 2015 http://busca.datos.gob.mx.

_ Bibliography

Bg

39

Open Knowledge Foundation. “Mexico.” Accessed July 28, 2015. http://index.okfn.org/place/mexico/

Presidential Decree of February 20, 2015, Decreto por el que se establece la regulación en materia de Datos Abiertos, (2015). http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5382838&fecha=20/02/2015 (Accesed 16/8/2015)

Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público, Presupuesto de Egresos de la Federación 2015: Versión Ciudadana, 2015. Accessed July 20, 2015 http://www.transparenciapresupuestaria.gob.mx/work/models/PTP/Home/Ultimas_Publicaciones/PEF_ciudadano_2015.pdf .

TPA Initiative Blog , http://iniciativatpa.org/

Unidad de Gobierno Digital de la Secretaría de la Función Pública, “Guía de Implementación de la Política de Datos Abiertos”, by Yolanda Martinez Mancilla, Diario Official de la Federación (Distrito Federal, Mexico, 18/6/2015). http://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5397117&fecha=18/06/2015 (accessed 20/7/2015)

Scanlon, Thomas Michael. On the Diversity of Objections to Inequality”. The Difficulty of Tolerance: Essays in Political Philosophy. Cambridge: CUP, 2003

SimilarWeb https://www.similarweb.com/

Van Schalkwyk, Francois; Canares, Michael; Chattapadhyay, Sumandro; Andrason, Alexander. Open Data Intermediaries in Developing Countries (2015). Accessed July 23, 2015. http://figshare.com/articles/Open_Data_Intermediaries_in_Developing_Countries/1449222

World Bank. World Development Report 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior. Washington, DC: World Bank, 2015. Accessed August 20, 2015. http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/Publications/WDR/WDR%202015/WDR-2015-Full-Report.pdf

World Bank. “World Bank Databank”. Accessed July 20, 2015, http://data.worldbank.org/.