Open MENA

A Recipe for Data-Driven Innovation in MENA

Building capacity and creating local successful scalable models are key priorities in which synergy can help optimise the process. Visualising success helps raise awareness in a nicely summarised fashion.

The pyramids in Giza, Egypt. Image by Abed Khooli, February 2016. Used with permission.

The data driven innovation weekthat took place in Cairo, Egypt (Feb. 18 – 23, 2016) is the first of its…

Data Love from MENA: Activities for Open Data Day 2016 #ODD16

This year’s Open Data Day is on 5 March. To celebrate and continue using open data, we have joined forces with celebrated people from the region. And here are the ideas we are up to — join us and share the #datalove at #odd16!

The 5-minute Data Pitch

The Access to Knowledge for Development Center (A2K4D) and the AUC Venture Lab are hosting a data pitch competition, “The 5-Minute Data Pitch”.

Sha…

Everything you always wanted to know about Egyptian folklore and data

What is the link between data and the famous Egyptian puppet operetta El-Leila El-Kebira (The Big Night)?

As part of the Data-Driven Innovation week of activities, the Information Technology Institute (ITI) is organising an innovative exhibition. It has one main goal: enable you to learn more about Big Data… through the words and eyes of El-Leila El-Kebira’s main characters. The famous puppet…

Ready, Steady, Go: #ddiMENA Is Here!

Last week, we were telling you about the most exciting of events at this beginning of 2016: the Data-Driven Innovation in MENA series of workshops. All of us, be it Open MENA, be it at the IDRC, at WebRadar.me and elsewhere, have been hard at work fine-tuning the last details of the programme. Here is, in a nutshell, what you may have missed — and how not to miss out any detail anymore.

Data…

Data Journalism in MENA? Open MENA Partners with InfoTimes

Open MENA and InfoTimes have decided to join forces and work together. Our joint efforts will focus on raising awareness about data journalism within MENA newsrooms as well as providing tailored training.

Each of our organisations has had its way of spreading the concept of data-driven journalism in the Middle East and North Africa. InfoTimes has been doing an excellent job in Egypt aiming to…

Democratic Money and Capital for the Commons

One of the more complicated, mostly unresolved issues facing most commons is how to assure their independence when the dominant systems of finance, banking, and money are so hostile to commoning. How can commoners meet their needs without replicating (perhaps in only modestly less harmful ways) the structural problems of the dominant money system?

Fortunately, there are a number of fascinating,…

Data-Driven Innovation in MENA: The Way Forward

Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) office in Cairo is organising an exciting set of activities focused on data-driven innovation and digital entrepreneurship later in this month. Taking place between 18 and 23 February 2016 and hosted by Cairo University, the event is a part of the IDRC’s important project “Harnessing the Economic Power of Data in the Middle East and North…

19 Studies on Open Data’s Impact Worldwide

Global commitments to and enthusiasm for open data are undoubtful. No matter which event you attend, there is a special place dedicated to telling success stories around. Those usually revolve around a sequel of events with an individual or an NGO identifying a problem, reaching out to a public administration or a government, and campaigning to create a momentum around the demand to open up data…

Happy New Year! Volunteer and Power Open MENA

We are in for 2016: Welcome and thanks. We have been busy doing research on the opportunities the data revolution provides for the MENA region and joining the freshly launched Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data to continue and extend work in that domain. We are also launching a call for volunteers, so be sure to share with others.

More and more people have been following our work…

Why Open Knowledge’s Global Open Data Index 2015 Is a Failure

The Open Knowledge’s Global Open Data Index 2015 has just been released; it covers 122 countries, which is 25 new ones from 2014. “Researchers and professionals interested in Open Data can still use the 2015 Index, but with caution. The only correct statement that I found is that “This year’s Index showed impressive gains from non-OECD countries”.Otherwise, the entire Index needs to be reviewed,”…

Wiki Loves Monuments — And Your Photos!

The Wikipedia photo contest around cultural heritage is open! Wiki Loves Monuments is a public photo competition around cultural heritage monuments, organised by Wikipedia/Wikimedia chapters and groups.

Participating countries to Wiki Loves Monuments 2015

This year again, different MENA countries participate: Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia along with four others from the Levant(Syria, Lebanon, Jordan,…

A Quick Overview of Open Data in MENA

Bruce Haupt, data-for-innovation consultant based in Oman, decided to explore the state of Open Data in the MENA region. Bruce will also provide further insights on Oman and the Gulf region for Open MENA. Ahlan!

1. Does open data exist in the Middle East?

Most assuredly it does. A quick gander at the OKFN rankings or the Open Data Barometer research(which is only a sampling – it doesn’t include…

Open MENA et Inkyfada ont uni leurs forces et travaillé à l’adaptation de notre « histoire de données » sur les réfugiés. Inkyfada est un magazine web tunisien innovant et innovateur, créé par une équipe de journalistes, développeurs et graphistes. Bonne lecture !

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