Open data, closed government: Unpacking data.gov.sg | Stevens | First Monday

Abstract:  In 2011, Singapore created data.gov.sg as an open, online repository for government data. This essay examines this Web portal, the data it contains, and some of the applications that have been built using it and aims to understand the role that data.gov.sg plays within the context of Singapore’s continued political and economic development. Although such portals and the data they contain are often presented as offering transformative modes of governance and democratic participation, analysis of data.gov.sg shows how the data portal can act to reinforce and entrench existing modes of governance.