Open Data portals around Europe: Ireland’s hub of innovation and collaboration

Ireland’s commitment to open data is demonstrated by the Open Data Portal, data.gov.ie, a central point for information via public sector datasets. The portal offers over 18,000 datasets from 147 publishers, helping to make governmental data accessible, reusable, and available in free open formats. Furthermore, it serves as an ecosystem for sharing data about a broad range of topics, like the legal system and public safety, health, and regions and cities.

Ireland’s journey with open data started in 2014 and the Irish government is dedicated in being a European leader in open data. Ireland’s scores in the Open Data Maturity assessment show this commitment to open data, with the country ranking first in 2019 and second in 2021. The Department of Public Expenditure has recently updated the Open Data Strategy for 2023-2027, which aims to provide easy access to high quality government data for everyone, while simultaneously promoting trust and stimulating innovation.

Moreover, the Open Data Portal of Ireland shows how datasets can be transformed into visualisations to provide further insight or inspiration. For example, the Marine Spatial Planning is Ireland’s first portal to link relevant policies listed in the National Marine Planning Framework for each marine sector or activity across the country. The activities map combines 100 datasets to show where marine activities take place.

Ireland’s Open Data Portal contributes to enhancing innovation and promoting trust by being transparent about the data that is used. By translating these datasets into showcases like the Marine Spatial Planning, the portal provides a central point for citizens to be informed and get inspired to use the data themselves.

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