The Guidelines for access to data for researchers, promoting data sharing with and by the public and private sectors, were supported by Research ICT Africa, along with the University of Pretoria’s Data Science for Social Impact Research Group and Data Science Law Lab, as knowledge partners to the G20 Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG). Developed under Priority 4: Equitable, Inclusive and Just AI, this Issue Brief offers a practical, human-rights-based framework for unlocking access to high-quality data in the public interest. The guidelines shared in this brief were included in the DEWG’s final Chair’s Statement in Annexure 7, which outlines guidelines for access to data for AI development.
The guidelines for access to data respond to a critical gap in global data governance: how to enable responsible access to public- and private-sector data for researchers, start-ups, and MSMEs, while safeguarding privacy, security, and accountability. They set out principle-based actions for policymakers and institutions across areas, including legal and regulatory reform, institutional readiness, public- and private-sector data sharing, technical standards, and data literacy.
RIA’s contribution reflects its long-standing work on data justice, access to information, and inclusive digital economies, with particular attention to Global South contexts. The guidelines also inform a companion pilot in South Africa focused on improving access to African language datasets for AI development, demonstrating how data access can enable public value creation and more equitable innovation ecosystems.
