End of Commitment Report – Carrying out Data Dialogues

Name of Evaluator

Frederick Richter, LL.M.

Email

[email protected]

Member Name

Hamburg, Germany

Action PlanAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... Title

Action plan – Hamburg, Germany, 2022 – 2024

CommitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action...

Carrying out Data Dialogues

Action

In an increasingly digitalized world, more and more information is provided through digital gateway. One objective of the Data Dialogues will be to create a room for capacity buildingEnhancing the skills, abilities, and processes of public servants, civil society, and citizens is essential to achieving long-lasting results in opening government. Technical specifications: Set of ac... to improve access to digitally provided information and, in conjunction with this, to promote capacity building and expertise. Moreover, with the commitment, we create different spaces for dialogue that will deliberately rely on plurality in the choice of topics and audiences, to highlight the importance of data for society and to jointly develop strategies for action for the city of Hamburg. The dialogue will integrate existing Hamburg initiatives that already deal with the communication of knowledge about data and the creation of new approaches to the topic.

Problem

The datafication of our society is a development that confronts everyone with numerous challenges. Every citizen, public administration, business, and civil society generates and uses data every day. Despite its increasing relevanceAccording to the OGP Articles of Governance, OGP commitments should include a clear open government lens. Specifically, they should advance at least one of the OGP values: transparency, citizen partic..., the current discourse on data and the datafication of society is sometimes very abstract and quite difficult to access.  In addition, the subject area is still understood as a niche or expert topic. As a result, several complex issues arise, e.g.: How can we create suitable access to the topic of data for different interest groups to ensure awareness and a sovereign and self-determined way of dealing with data/datafication? How can we create transparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More and actively counter fears/concerns that arise in the population due to increasing datafication?

1.1 What was the overall level of progress in the commitment implementation at the time of this assessment?

complete

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

“With Data Culture and Data Dialogs, Hamburg is on the right track towards Open Government and has understood that the challenge is a cultural one,” wrote a reader on the public project website. And indeed, the completionImplementers must follow through on their commitments for them to achieve impact. For each commitment, OGP’s Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) evaluates the degree to which the activities outlin... More of this commitment is of special importance because a first necessary step to open up government must be to start communication between government and citizens. And this is what the innovative format of low-threshold accessible dialogues did. They build up a connection between the stakeholders.

This fundamental importance of commitment is emphasised by a stringent approach. Within two years, a dialogue format was established that was understood and approved by the stakeholders involved at all meetings.

Provide evidence that supports and justifies your answer:

• OGP Local End of Commitment Review Data Dialogue
• Graphical representation of the project progress
• Progress overview on OGP’s website 
• Blog: From Transparency to Engagement: Hamburg’s Path to Open Government
• Blog: How Hamburg Builds a Data Culture in Public Administration

1.2 Describe the main external or internal factors that impacted implementation of this commitment and how they were addressed (or not).

The commitment in Hamburg was implemented through two primary formats: Data Dialogue, focusing on public administration, and Data Dialogue by Friends, organized in collaboration with civil society organizations. These formats targeted diverse groups, such as volunteers and social entrepreneurs, to foster inclusive and meaningful engagement.

Key Factors Impacting Implementation:
Internal Factors:

•  Challenges within public administration, including limited data literacy and the need for cross-departmental coordination, shaped the approach to implementation.
• Efforts to address these included capacity-building initiatives and fostering collaboration between various governmental units.

External Factors:

• Civil society organizations played a critical role, adapting the dialogues to resonate with diverse stakeholders and ensuring broader societal impact.
• The complexity of engaging audiences with varying levels of data literacy required innovative communication strategies. Hamburg employed accessible event formats to demystify data governance, demonstrate practical applications, and build trust among citizens.

Each event was designed as a standalone project, with tailored topics, methodologies, and partnerships. This flexible, case-by-case approach allowed the commitment to adapt dynamically to specific challenges and stakeholder needs. The collaboration between public administration and external partners ensured that both internal challenges and external inputs were integrated effectively into the strategy.

1.3 Was the commitment implemented as originally planned?

All of the commitment milestones were implemented as planned

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

Four Dialogue events were to be held due to initial planning. To fulfill the commitment different spaces for dialogue had to be created in order to foster plurality in the choice of topics and audiences.

Both the conceptual approach and the chosen format have proven themselves in practice. Moreover: Due to the high level of interest, the “Data Dialogue by Friends”-format was additionally implemented as part of the commitment.

Provide evidence for your answer:

2.1.1. – Did the government disclose more information; improve the quality of the information (new or existing); improve the value of the information; improve the channels to disclose or request information or improve accessibility to information?
Yes

Degree of result:

Major

Explanation: In narrative form, what has been the impact on people or practice.

This commitment enhances access to information by improving the visibility and accessibility of existing urban data initiatives. It focuses on promoting transparency and understanding of data-driven projects, ensuring they are more visible and comprehensible to diverse stakeholders, including public administrators, civil society, and citizen.

The commitment should set a starting point to initiate a development that will ideally lead to the opening of public processes in the further course – and at best also contribute to the opening of public databases, from which the general public can then benefit.

In view of the nature of the commitment, no immediate results were expected from the outset. For example, the initiators did not expect the quantity and quality of the data provided to improve immediately after the commitment was finalised. Expectations were therefore not disappointed.

Provide evidence for your answer:

• OGP Local End of Commitment Review Data Dialogue
• Graphical representation of the project progress
• Progress overview on OGP’s website 
• Blog: From Transparency to Engagement: Hamburg’s Path to Open Government
• Blog: How Hamburg Builds a Data Culture in Public Administration

2.1.2. – Did the government create new opportunities to seek feedback from citizens/enable participation inform or influence decisions; improve existing channels or spaces to seek feedback from citizens/enable participation/ inform or influence decisions; create or improve capabilities in the government or the public aimed to improve how the government seeks feedback from citizens/enables participation/ or allows for the public to inform or influence decisions?

Yes

Degree of result:

Major

Explanation: In narrative form, what has been the impact on people or practice.

This commitment played a significant role in fostering civil society and public participationGiving citizens opportunities to provide input into government decision-making leads to more effective governance, improved public service delivery, and more equitable outcomes. Technical specificatio..., as the series of events were collaboratively designed with input from a diverse range of stakeholders. This inclusive approach ensured the initiatives resonated with and addressed the needs of various groups, thereby strengthening engagement and collective ownership.

Provide evidence for your answer:

• OGP Local End of Commitment Review Data Dialogue
• Graphical representation of the project progress
• Progress overview on OGP’s website 
• Blog: From Transparency to Engagement: Hamburg’s Path to Open Government
• Blog: How Hamburg Builds a Data Culture in Public Administration

2.1.3 Did the government create or improve channels, opportunities or capabilities to hold officials answerable to their actions?

Not Applicable

2.1.4 Other Results

Not Applicable

2.2 Did the commitment address the public policy problem that it intended to address as described in the action plan?

Yes

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

Yes, the commitment successfully addressed the public policy problem identified in Hamburg’s action plan. The key challenge was to enhance access to information and promote public engagement with urban data initiatives. The implementation focused on creating inclusive and accessible formats, which brought together various stakeholders to discuss the use and societal impact of data.

• Improved Data Accessibility: Hamburg organized Data Dialogues to make urban data initiatives more visible and comprehensible. This directly tackled the problem of insufficient access to and understanding of public data.
• Inclusive Stakeholder Engagement: Events were co-designed with civil society organizations (e.g. AKTIVOLI, Körber Start-Hub) and targeted diverse groups, including social entrepreneurs and volunteers. This broadened participation and integrated multiple perspectives into topics about data.Shift in Organizational Culture: Within public administration, Data Dialogues encouraged collaboration and deeper understanding of data governance challanges, aligning with the action plan’s goal of fostering a culture of openness and transparency.

Provide evidence for your answer:

• OGP Local End of Commitment Review Data Dialogue
• Graphical representation of the project progress
• Progress overview on OGP’s website 
• Blog: From Transparency to Engagement: Hamburg’s Path to Open Government
• Blog: How Hamburg Builds a Data Culture in Public Administration

3. Provide at least one lesson or reflection relating to the implementation of this commitment. It can be the identification of key barriers to implementation, an unexpected help/hindrance, recommendations for future commitments, or if the commitment should be taken forward to the next action plan.

A key lesson from Hamburg’s commitment was the importance of fostering collaboration between public administration and civil society to overcome the challenges of making complex data topics more accessible and engaging. The Data Dialogues initiative provided an opportunity to experiment with alternative approaches for simplifying data discussions, creating spaces for meaningful dialogue between government officials and civil society. These interactions helped build trust, share insights, and develop a mutual understanding of how data can improve governance and promote public engagement.
An unexpected help came from the willingness of external experts and civil society organizations to actively engage in the process. Their participation not only broadened the scope of the initiative but also helped overcome internal skepticism within the public administration, ultimately leading to more open and productive conversations about data use.

For future commitments, one recommendation is to **strengthen the focus on continuous capacity building** within public administration, particularly around data literacy and the practical application of data for decision-making. This will ensure that officials are better equipped to engage in data-driven discussions and initiatives. Additionally, a more structured follow-up process for events like the Data Dialogues could help maintain momentum and track the progress of ideas and collaborations born out of these engagements.

Given its success in bridging gaps between citizens, civil society, and public administration, this commitment should be carried forward in future, with a stronger emphasis on scalability and long-term sustainability.