The UN Collaborative on Citizen Data has opened a global consultation on the draft Copenhagen Framework on Citizen Data. The draft Framework includes an operational definition of citizen data, guiding principles, and strategies for creating an enabling environment for coordination, production, and use of citizen data, as well as a roadmap for the Framework’s implementation.

The Collaborative on Citizen Data, co-convened by the UN Statistics Division and the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), is a multi-stakeholder collaborative of countries and regional and international agencies that serves as a platform for collaboration and exchange of experiences on citizen data. The initiative aims to bring together partners from all communities within national data ecosystems to:

• fill critical data gaps on less visible groups such as migrants, persons with disabilities, and Indigenous populations, and improve data on gender, to better support implementation and review of the SDGs; and
• enhance citizen participation in government decision making and advance fairness, inclusiveness, openness, and transparency in statistics.

The draft Framework defines citizen data as “data originating from initiatives where citizens either initiate or are sufficiently engaged, at the minimum, in the design and/or collection stages of the data value chain, irrespective of whether these data are integrated into official statistics.” According to the draft, defining characteristics of citizen data are levels of citizen participation, stages of the data value chain citizens are engaged in; and types of initiatives for data collection.

The draft Framework outlines a set of principles for citizen data, guided by the human rights-based approach to data, among other considerations, to ensure that data production and use are responsible, professional, and ethical. Accordingly, citizen data governance, management, and protection must be guided by: (1) independence; (2) relevance; (3) participation and informed consent; (4) professional standards; (5) data security; (6) self-definition and self-identification; (7) transparency; (8) ethical and safe production and use; (9) confidentiality, privacy, and data attribution; and (10) openness and accessibility.

The draft Framework identifies the need for an enabling environment for the sustainable coordination, production, and use of citizen data, nurtured by, inter alia:

• A whole-of-society approach to data;
• Human capital;
• Trust;
• Laws and regulations;
• Data governance mechanisms and institutional arrangements;
• Inclusive statistical and technical infrastructure;
• Data quality assurance that is fit-for-purpose; and
• Adequate funding.

The implementation roadmap involves: mobilizing resources and partners; finalizing the Framework, with the support of case studies, consultations, and experiences; and implementing the Framework, including by advocating for and raising awareness about citizen data and fostering peer-to-peer learning, among other efforts.

The Copenhagen Framework on Citizen Data will inform discussions on data and indicators for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the 55th session of the UN Statistics Commission, taking place from 27 February to 1 March 2024. The global consultation on the draft Framework was announced on 2 February 2024.

The Collaborative on Citizen Data was established in response to recommendations from experts and a decision by the UN Statistical Commission at its 54th session, to foster systematic collaboration among civil society, national statistical systems, academia, and other relevant stakeholders to advance the sustainable coordination, production, and use of citizen data for impact. [Publication: Copenhagen Framework on Citizen Data] [Collaborative on Citizen Data Terms of Reference] [Global Consultation on the Copenhagen Framework on Citizen Data]