Public Data Goes Social

Data is invaluable. Access to data has the potential to illuminate issues in a way that triggers results. Nevertheless, poor handling of data can put facts in an opaque structure that communicates nothing. If it doesn’t promote discussion or provide contextual understanding, data may be of limited value to the public.

Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999 after lengthy years of military rule. Probing the facts behind data was taken as an affront to authority and was seen to be trying question the stained reputation of the junta. The Official Secrets Act compelled civil servants not to share government information. Even thirteen years after the return to democracy, accessing public data can be a difficult task. Data about public expenditure communicates little to the majority of the public, who are not well-versed in financial accounting and complex arithmetic.