Gavà uses robotics to update its open data portal: DigiCanvis observatory

Gavà City Council has implemented one tool that publishes automatically, without human intervention and with the desired frequency, its open data on the AOC's open data portal.

This one automation of data publication it solves the problems associated with the manual publication of open data, a mechanical and repetitive task that creates an additional workload for public workers and is often neglected due to lack of time or to attend to routine tasks.

The solution facilitates compliance with the laws of transparència, regarding the obligations of active advertising for all public entities, as it allows the information published to always be updated and immediately available to citizens. This is an innovative initiative published in theDigiCanvis Observatory.

Com funciona?

Gavà City Council uses the AOC's open data portal, based on the CKAN open source technology. It currently has more than 50 datasets published, of which 30 are automated. Some of the items that are published automatically are: supplier invoices, information on works and actions in public space and equipment or the services provided by Social Services.

The automation works as follows:

  • First, it runs a process that extracts data from the council's information systems.
  • It then validates that the data is free of errors according to certain rules.
  • It then converts them to a format that meets the requirements of the AOC open data portal.
  • Finally, it publishes them automatically on the AOC open data portal, without human intervention.

Automation detects errors that occur in the process and alerts if a decision or human intervention is necessary to solve the problem. It also has a control panel to manage the scheduling and execution of the process, from where it can be activated or deactivated if necessary (for example, if it has failed or if there is a very important update of the data that you want to publish immediately).

What advantages does it entail for the entity?

  • It increases the efficiency and productive capacity of the organization. Automation frees public workers from manual and repetitive tasks, time they can devote to other value-added tasks.
  • Improves the quality of public services. It allows to offer 24×7 availability, immediacy and reliability of the published data, always updated.
  • Encourages transparència and data reuse. The City Council's open data is made available to citizens and companies immediately, contributing to higher quality citizen participation.

The project has been in operation at Gavà City Council since 2021 and can be replicated by any city council that uses the AOC open data portal and has the data in structured formats.

If you want to know all the key aspects to implement this initiative, such as the legal and technological aspects to take into account or the barrierseres that can jeopardize the success of the solution and how to overcome them, you can consult the sheet Automated publication of data on the AOC open data portal, available at the DigiCanvis Observatory.

DigiCanvis Observatory

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