The Open Rural Data Gap
Publication Date/Time
2020-05-13T07:00:00+00:00
Country
Europe
A data gap between rural and urban areas remains, but investing in
smart regions can bridge this gap
THE RURAL DATA GAP AND THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

The division between rural and urban areas is not new. Citizens in
rural areas were one of the last places to receive good electricity
and phone service in the early 1900s. The government then ensured
these facilities as it considered electricity and phone services
essential. Currently, many homes in rural areas struggle to get a
stable and reliable internet connection. Several rural experts
[https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/05/technology/rural-america-digital-divide-coronavirus.html]
from across Europe state that the government needs to step in to
create financial incentive for companies to deliver good internet
connection in these areas. The same statement is applicable for data.
There is limited availability and access to data, let alone open data,
available from rural areas in comparison to urban areas, and this is
often not tackled in digital strategies. Oftentimes, governments do
not have a clear overview of the digital and data services available
in rural areas because these are not always properly mapped.

However, there is evidence that investments in digitalisation and the
data economy in rural areas is worthwhile and can support rural areas.
Approximately, 27 percent
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnQYZC3bRYs] of all EU citizens live
in rural or non-urban areas. For example, an estimate of a third of
all the citizens in Ireland and France live in rural areas
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnQYZC3bRYs]. Thereby, the rural
economy is also important for the EU. Agriculture receives around 40
percent of the EU budget and covers 47 percent of EU territory
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf].
Forestry accounts for 1 percent of the total EU GDP
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf]
and is also important for tourism. Lastly, fishery is one of the key
investment areas for developing sustainability and growth across the
EU, with €6400M allocated to this from 2014-2020
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf].
Thus, both in terms of citizen representation and economic benefits,
it is worthwhile investing in open data in rural areas.

INCENTIVES TO BRIDGE THE DIGITAL AND DATA DIVIDE

The European Data Portal’s (EDP) Analytical Report titled
“Enabling Smart Rural: The Open Data Gap
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf]”
was commissioned by the European Commission [https://ec.europa.eu/] in
2019. The study addresses the digital divide between rural and urban
areas with the aim to share more knowledge on this issue and to
provide solutions. There are six key recommendations described in the
report:

 	* Support local champions to establish and institutionalise the
processes and practices of open data in rural administrations, with
close relationships to urban open data groups (this may be the
national portal, a nearby city portal or an activist group).
 	* Highlight the importance of the agricultural High Value Datasets
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf]
(e.g. the agricultural trade statistics
[https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/DDN-20190423-1],
the agricultural and rural development budget
[https://ec.europa.eu/info/food-farming-fisheries/key-policies/common-agricultural-policy/rural-development_en]
and the farm accountancy data network
[https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/rica/] data) to the member states
that have been identified as having a gap between their agricultural
percentage of GDP and their open agricultural datasets.
 	* Create collaborative links with complementary data owners,
including Not for Profits, NGOs, researchers and private
organisations, that allow data to be opened and made available
together.
 	* Invest in understanding the key factors of smart regions that mean
they are more fit for purpose than simply being smart cities with
sprawling reach, in order to identify key data to open.
 	* Establish links with urban areas, via such instruments as hubs or
universities with complementary interests. There are already examples
of this in the agricultural sector, for instance, the Wageningen
University Masterclass Accelerator
[https://www.regiofoodvalley.nl/actueel/nieuws/start-drie-programmas-voor-startups-en-scaleups-in-de-agrifoodsector-voorjaar-2020]
in collaboration with Regio FoodValley
[https://www.regiofoodvalley.nl/].
 	* Identify and support a wider range of rural-specific challenges,
such as out-migration, health solutions that address distance, and
food provenance.

Lastly, the experts propose a solution to bridge the open data gap
through investing in smart rural areas and smart regions in order to
connect the urban and rural areas.

THE SOCIAL ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES FOR RURAL AREAS DURING THE COVID-19
PANDEMIC 

The consequences of the digital divide and data gap in rural areas are
even more striking during the COVID-19 pandemic
[https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/events-as-they-happen].
Many issues have now been highlighted as they can no longer be ignored
or remain below the radar. For example, many schools are facing
difficulties teaching virtual school classes. Children that need to
follow virtual school classes from home often do not have a laptop or
do not have stable and reliable internet connection in rural areas.
Thus, there is a danger that children from rural areas will be
disadvantaged more than children in urban areas because of this
digital divide. Moreover, the lack of open datasets and data
infrastructure (such as regional portals) also makes it more difficult
for health and government experts to map the spread of COVID-19 in
rural areas.

New initiatives, such as those from the Rural Services Network
[https://www.rsnonline.org.uk/] in the United Kingdom and Regio
FoodValley [https://www.regiofoodvalley.nl/] in the Netherlands,
appeal to government decision-makers. Moreover, these initiatives try
to create more awareness for the digital divide and data gap while
supporting their local rural communities. For example, the Rural
Services Network [https://www.rsnonline.org.uk/], organises various
events such as phoneline access, webinars, and seminars on access and
connectivity. Also Regio FoodValley [https://www.regiofoodvalley.nl/]
organises webinars on how to organise socially distant working spaces
on farms.

WEBINAR: THE OPEN DATA RURAL GAP

On 28 April, the EDP team hosted a webinar
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnQYZC3bRYs&list=PLz7C9CUkkWwxvrV9d71eLu5J-KgjN2hwy]
on open data in rural areas. The speakers were:

 	* Gefion Thuermer from King's College London,
 	* Johanna Walker from University of Southampton,
 	* Jos Berkvens from Regio FoodValley, and
 	* Daniel Worth from Rural Services Network.

In this webinar, the speakers discussed research into the availability
of rural open data and its supply across Europe, with several
examples. This included insights into defining what rural is and how
digitisation has impacted the availability, access and (re-)use of
open rural data. The webinar is available online in three parts:

 	* Part 1 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnQYZC3bRYs] focuses on
research into the availability of rural open data and its supply
across Europe with a deep dive into aforementioned research
“Enabling Smart Rural
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf]”.
Moreover, speakers shared insights into defining what rural is and how
digitisation has impacted the availability, access and (re-)use of
open rural data.  
 	* In part 2 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MQOZo6YHAk], speakers
discuss practical examples and insights into how rural open data is
used to overcome the open rural data gap. In addition, there are
discussions on how COVID-19 has impacted agricultural open data and
insights are shared on how open government data from rural areas can
help to shape communities and be used to benchmark development in
different areas.  
 	* The final part [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHFI9AYkpw4] of
the webinar is the Q&A section.

 

Thank you to our participants and speakers for joining the webinar. To
learn more, read the full analytical report on open rural data
[/sites/default/files/analytical_report_14_enabling_smart_rural.pdf]
on the EDP and watch the webinar online
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnQYZC3bRYs&list=PLz7C9CUkkWwxvrV9d71eLu5J-KgjN2hwy].
Aware of rural open data examples or stories?  Share them with us
via mail [/en/feedback/form?type=4], and follow us on Twitter
[https://twitter.com/EU_DataPortal], Facebook
[http://www.facebook.com/EuropeanDataPortal] or LinkedIn
[https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8428984/] to stay up to date!
