Digital government teaching case study

Open Data for Open Governance: Lessons from Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality's Open Data Platform

Hande Tek Turan
Yeditepe University, 2025

“... Numbers do not take orders, nor do they lie. 

Numbers have no ideology or party. 

Numbers give you many clues about the truth or the roadmap you need to make for the future, but on the condition that you also understand the story behind them...”. 

In early 2020, Istanbul began navigating a period of political change and digital ambition, following the election of  Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu. Dr. Erol Özgüner, the Group Head of Technology at the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB),  found himself at a critical decision point. Having just received the mayor's political endorsement to launch an open data initiative, he was tasked with translating that vision into action. The municipality had a growing repository of urban data but limited internal capacity to manage it, fragmented systems, and uneven digital literacy among departments. Meanwhile, civic groups, journalists, and entrepreneurs were demanding immediate access to key datasets, and the newly elected mayor, who had run on a platform of transparency and participation, was eager to demonstrate tangible results.

As Group Head of Technology, Dr. Özgüner had to advise the mayor on how to prioritize limited resources: Should he rush to publish key datasets, which would involve the rapid release of data, to meet public demand? Should he first build robust internal data governance systems, to ensure sustainable infrastructure? Or, should he invest in ecosystem partnerships with academia, start-ups, and NGOs to co-develop impactful applications?

Although all three options had merit, institutional constraints meant they could not all be pursued at full strength simultaneously. Each path carried trade-offs in terms of speed, sustainability, risk, and legitimacy. The decision would shape not only the data platform's initial public reception but also its long-term capacity to enable data-driven governance in Istanbul. 

Framing the Broader Value of Open Data

The stakes were high because open data is never just about files or formats. In the era of digital governance, open data has become an instrument for promoting transparency, fostering accountability, and enabling more participatory models of public service. Scholars and practitioners - such as public sector officials, civic technologists, and policy consultants - alike point to open data as a lever for civic empowerment, policy innovation, and economic opportunity (Zuiderwijk et al., 2014; Davies, 2019; Ubaldi, 2013).

By removing barriers to access, governments can use open data to invite citizens into policy conversations that were once reserved for elites. They can enable researchers and developers to build new digital tools, apps, and services tailored to public needs. Most critically, they can foster a culture of evidence-based decision-making across all levels of administration.

Open data is also integral to smart city strategies, where data-driven management of transport, energy, and environmental systems promises more sustainable and responsive urban governance (Chourabi et al., 2012). In this context, the İBB initiative reflected a global trend, but distinctly local pressures shaped it.

Background: Building Open Data in a Fragmented Context

Turkey’s experience with open data has evolved unevenly, marked by ambition at the national level but limited implementation on the ground. The country’s digital transformation in data governance began in the 1990s and early 2000s with the development of e-government initiatives, such as the National Information Society Strategy (2006–2010) and the launch of the centralized e-Government Gateway (e-Devlet Kapısı) in 2008. These reforms aimed to modernize public service delivery, but emphasized administrative efficiency over transparency and public access to government data.

In the 2010s, the concept of open government data (OGD) gained visibility, particularly after Turkey joined the Open Government Partnership (OGP) in 2011. However, this momentum was not sustained; Turkey’s participation became inactive, and the open data policy remained fragmented. The 2016–2019 National e-Government Strategy, along with the launch of the National Data Dictionary in 2021, signalled a renewed interest in data standardization and transparency. Nonetheless, a dedicated legal framework for open data remains absent. Today, implementation varies across institutions, constrained by legal ambiguity, political hesitation, and institutional inertia. With the closure of the Digital Transformation Office in March 2025 and transfer of its functions to the newly formed Cyber Security Presidency, national coordination on open data remains uncertain.

In this landscape, local actors—especially metropolitan municipalities—have become the de facto laboratories for experimentation in open governance. İstanbul, home to more than 16 million residents—20% of the country’s total population—and making up 30% of the country’s GDP, has emerged as a leading local innovator. The political transformation following the 2019 municipal elections, in which Ekrem İmamoğlu of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was elected mayor, created new momentum. Transparency, participation, and data-driven governance became key pillars of the new administration’s vision for public service. Unlike national institutions that largely retained a closed-data culture, the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) sought to make municipal data openly accessible. 

The İBB Open Data Platform, launched in January 2020, became a flagship initiative of this new approach. The city had already been active in international networks like the World Economic Forum’s G20 Global Smart Cities Alliance and participated in global projects such as the Inclusive Procurement Launchpad. These affiliations helped shape a vision of open data not only as a transparency tool but as an engine of innovation and inclusive urban governance.

An emblematic example came early in the administration. When Mayor İmamoğlu proposed expanding the city's subsidized bread kiosks, political opponents in the city council resisted. In response, İBB’s digital mapping team, led by Dr. Erol Özgüner, used geospatial data to demonstrate that only 6.4 million residents—less than half the city—lived within 500 meters of a kiosk. “When the council saw this, they accepted the proposal,” Özgüner later remarked. “Numbers were talking, not politics.” This episode highlighted the power of data in overcoming institutional resistance and building consensus.

Under the leadership of Dr. Özgüner, İBB began consolidating data across its 14 semi-autonomous municipal subsidiaries. While some units had advanced digital capabilities, many lacked standard formats, interoperability, or even willingness to share information. The municipality’s open data initiative therefore pursued a multi-pronged strategy: building the technical infrastructure, engaging internal stakeholders, and encouraging public participation. The portal focused on transportation, urban planning, the environment, and social services—areas with both technical feasibility and high public relevance. 

İBB also partnered with universities and civic organizations to support data-driven research and co-develop digital applications. These collaborations were integrated into the city’s broader Smart City Strategy and Vision 2050 Action Plan, aligning open data efforts with long-term goals for sustainability, inclusiveness, and technological innovation.

İBB’s stated objectives for open data were clear: to create a more informed public, improve customer service, enhance operational efficiency, and generate public value through transparency and collaboration. The portal’s FAQ page (https://data.ibb.gov.tr/en/faq) framed the initiative as an invitation for citizens, developers, researchers, and journalists alike to participate in shaping a smarter, more accountable city. As our case study unfolds, we will examine how this ambitious platform was developed and implemented, the tensions that shaped its evolution, and the lessons it offers for digital governance in complex urban environments.

Development and Implementation of the Open Data Platform

By the end of 2019, İstanbul's newly elected municipal administration faced a daunting but promising landscape. The local elections had not only shifted the political balance but also raised public expectations for transparency and innovation. With Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu championing a governance model centered on participation and openness, the pressure was on to deliver visible reforms. For Dr. Erol Özgüner, İBB’s Group Head of Technology, one opportunity stood out: open data.

Just months into the new term, Dr. Özgüner and his team launched the İstanbul Open Data Portal (https://data.ibb.gov.tr) in January 2020. The decision was not just a result of political directives, but also a reflection of a growing awareness within the municipality that its existing data systems were fragmented and underutilized. Fourteen different municipal subsidiaries, responsible for services ranging from public transport, energy production, payment systems, and housing, to waste management, each held their own datasets. But without integration or public access, the data’s potential remained untapped. 

Dr. Özgüner understood the strategic value of unlocking this information. He envisioned the platform not only as a tool for transparency but as a catalyst for digital transformation — an engine to support start-up and ramp-up companies, researchers, and civic tech actors. Early consultations with entrepreneurs at Zemin Istanbul, İBB's Incubation Centre https://frd.ibb.istanbul/zemin-istanbul-ibbnin-kulucka-merkezi/,confirmed what he suspected: promising ideas often stalled due to a lack of real municipal data for testing and validation.

Inspired by successful models in cities like London, New York, and Barcelona, İBB’s team moved quickly. They began by releasing nearly 100 datasets, starting with less politically sensitive topics, such as weather data, transit maps, and environmental indicators. Legal teams worked in parallel to ensure compliance with Turkey’s personal data protection laws, carefully navigating potential risks.

The platform was also deeply shaped by İstanbul’s broader smart city strategy. Its development aligned with İBB’s 2030 Smart City Strategic Plan and the Vision 2050 Action Framework. Open data was no longer an isolated project; it had been integrated into broader digital goals, including efficient service delivery, responsive urban planning, and evidence-based policymaking. As Özgüner later described it, “Data was no longer just for internal reporting — it was becoming a public good.”

Still, implementation was far from smooth. The initiative encountered resistance from some departments, which were hesitant to share their data, citing concerns related to legal, political, or operational issues. Standardizing formats across subsidiaries posed technical challenges. While some staff were enthusiastic, others were wary of public scrutiny or the extra workload required to prepare data for release. The team had to prioritize: which datasets would build the most momentum, and which internal battles were worth fighting at this time? 

By April 2025, the platform had grown to host 489 datasets covering mobility, emergency management, environment, energy, and social services. There were 10 main data topics when it came to the datasets: Mobility, Living, Environment, People, Governance, Energy, Security, International and Communication Technologies, Disaster Management, and Economy. The platform offered API access, metadata search, and user-friendly dashboards. Through partnerships with universities and civil society, İBB also began to track how the data was being used in research and public applications, reinforcing the feedback loop between governance and innovation. The figure below illustrates the steady expansion of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality’s Open Data Platform since its launch in January 2020. The continuous increase in the number of datasets reflects the municipality’s institutional commitment to transparency, as well as its evolving technical capacity to manage, standardize, and release municipal data. This growth also signals the municipality’s increasing organizational maturity in data governance, as well as its responsiveness to civic, academic, and policy demands for more accessible and diverse public data.

The platform’s design reflects both its strategic origins and evolving function. It was meant to serve not only policymakers and developers, but also ordinary residents — those trying to understand traffic flows, air quality, or school locations in their neighborhood. As Özgüner noted, “Our job wasn’t just to release data. It was to make it usable, meaningful, and trusted.”

Yet challenges persist. Despite visible progress, the team continues to face questions about the platform’s long-term sustainability, particularly given the potential for changes in political leadership. Some high-value datasets — such as those related to procurement, budgeting, or land use — remain under negotiation, reflecting the enduring tension between openness and political risk.

Still, the initiative represents a new model for public service in Turkey — one that blends top-down political will with bottom-up institutional learning. For Dr. Özgüner and his colleagues, the portal has become more than a technical project. It is a daily exercise in digital governance: balancing speed with rigor, innovation with compliance, and ambition with capacity.

The Public Servant’s Dilemma 

By early February 2020, just weeks after the soft launch of İstanbul's Open Data Portal, Dr. Erol Özgüner convened his core team in a strategy session to chart the next phase of the project. While the launch had been symbolically powerful, it was clear that deeper decisions were now needed. The mayor’s office was expecting rapid, public-facing results. Civil society actors were eager to contribute. But several municipal departments had begun pushing back, citing legal concerns, data sensitivity, and operational overload.

Sitting at the head of the table, Dr. Özgüner knew that the platform’s early momentum had to be translated into sustainable progress. Yet, with a limited staff, finite political capital, and diverging expectations, the municipality could not accomplish everything at once. The team needed to prioritize. During a planned meeting just weeks after the platform's soft launch, three distinct strategic pathways emerged, each offering potential value but also carrying their own risks.

Option 1: Expand Data Accessibility and Diversity

The first option focused on speed and visibility. The more datasets İBB could publish in the short term, the stronger the political message of transparency. It would meet public expectations and allow journalists, developers, and researchers to begin building tools, conducting analysis, and holding the city accountable.

“We have the public’s attention now,” one advisor said. “This is the moment to prove we mean business.”

Indeed, expanding access would build trust and stimulate innovation. However, the risks were also clear: the IT infrastructure was still evolving, some datasets lacked metadata, and internal teams were not uniformly prepared for scrutiny.

Still, the pressure for quick wins was real — and politically necessary.

Option 2: Build Strong Internal Data Governance

The second option emphasized long-term sustainability. Rather than rushing to publish, İBB could first build internal data governance systems: standardized formats, legal compliance reviews, and training protocols for departments.

Dr. Özgüner appreciated this approach. His background in public sector IT had taught him the costs of scaling without structure.

“Releasing data is easy,” he noted. “Managing trust when something goes wrong is the real challenge.”

Governance would reduce legal risk, ensure data quality, and foster inter-departmental coordination. Yet it offered fewer short-term political benefits — and might frustrate external stakeholders looking for immediate access.

Option 3: Strengthen Ecosystem Collaboration

The third pathway involved looking outward. Researchers, civic tech developers, and international organizations had already approached İBB with offers of collaboration. These partnerships could extend the platform’s reach, enhance its legitimacy, and support the co-creation of useful tools and dashboards.

Some team members argued this was the most sustainable path — building an ecosystem around open data rather than a platform alone.

But collaboration came with coordination costs. Aligning stakeholders with different goals — and managing their expectations — would require a sophisticated strategy. There was also a risk of becoming dependent on external actors for the platform’s success.

Balancing Act: A Blended Strategy

Each option reflected a valid strategic logic. Expanding access would energize the public and demonstrate commitment. Governance would protect against missteps and institutionalize reform. Ecosystem engagement would build broader ownership and enhance impact.

But İBB did not have the resources to pursue all three at full strength simultaneously. Prioritization was needed, and the stakes were high.

Ultimately, Dr. Özgüner and his team opted for a blended approach: focus first on expanding access to low-sensitivity, high-value datasets while laying the groundwork for internal governance and selectively cultivating partnerships with academia and civil society.

“We don’t need perfection on day one,” he told his staff. “But we need clarity on where we’re going.”

This strategic compromise allowed İBB to build momentum, demonstrate transparency, and protect long-term institutional integrity. As of 2025, the portal hosts 489 datasets, operates with clear governance protocols, and serves as a model of urban digital transformation in Turkey.

The dilemma faced by Dr. Özgüner remains instructive. It reflects a broader challenge in digital government: how to balance speed with caution, openness with control, and ambition with capacity. His decisions — and their consequences — continue to shape İstanbul’s path toward becoming a truly data-driven metropolis.

Actions and Reactions

Taking the Leap: Launching the Open Data Portal

On January 18, 2020, the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality publicly launched the Açık Veri Portalı (Open Data Portal) — a visible, tangible step in its campaign for digital transparency. For Dr. Erol Özgüner, who had advocated for a phased yet deliberate approach, it was both a milestone and the beginning of a much larger transformation. The platform, built using the open-source CKAN data infrastructure, marked İBB’s official entrance into the world of open urban data.

The launch was designed to serve multiple strategic goals:

  • Transparency: By publishing real-time and historical data, the municipality could demystify operations and strengthen public accountability.

  • Participation: Easy access to structured datasets would empower citizens and civil society to engage with city planning and policy.

  • Innovation: Entrepreneurs, start-ups, and researchers would gain a vital resource for developing digital tools and services that respond to urban needs.

Internally, the launch created new momentum. Departments that had previously been reluctant to share information began to see the platform as a central pillar of İBB’s digital future — a shift that Özgüner considered critical. But success would depend on execution, scale, and how well the initiative could respond to evolving stakeholder expectations.

Reactions: Progress and Growing Pains

In the months following the launch, the Open Data Platform began to show signs of both impact and limitation.

On the positive side:

  • Data access expanded rapidly: By early 2025, more than 480 datasets had been published, covering urban mobility, weather, energy use, and environmental indicators. These datasets are now routinely used by media, developers, and advocacy groups to monitor city performance.

  • Citizen engagement deepened: Budget visualizations, transit maps, and service delivery dashboards enabled residents to ask more informed questions — and demand more accountable answers.

  • A nascent innovation ecosystem emerged:  Developers began integrating municipal datasets into mobile apps. Universities used the data in urban studies. Civic media referenced it in policy analysis. The portal was becoming a shared resource rather than just a bureaucratic output.

For Dr. Özgüner and his team, these achievements validated their decision to move forward with an incremental strategy. Yet challenges soon emerged that threatened the platform’s longer-term viability.

Behind the Scenes: Institutional Coordination and Technical Depth

One of the more invisible accomplishments, as Özgüner has noted in interviews, was completing data integration across all İBB departments and subsidiaries. This included not only legacy data systems, which had historically operated in silos, but also real-time and spatial data infrastructures. The municipality had begun building toward scenario-based data analytics, positioning itself to anticipate, rather than just react to, urban issues.

“What makes this work isn’t just the tech,” Özgüner often reminded his staff. “It’s the alignment — the fact that our subsidiaries trust the process, that we’ve created an online relationship with them, and that we’ve normalized coordination.”

İBB also began working with global technology leaders, not only to acquire better products but also to build internal capacity. Training programs, benchmarking visits, and expert collaborations were designed to keep the municipality’s data governance approach in sync with international standards.

Challenges: Standardization, Ecosystem, and Literacy

Despite visible progress, systemic barriers remained, some of which were highlighted in the 2024 Local Governments Open Data Index, published in February 2025. Three in particular stood out:

  1. Standardization and data quality: Although integration had improved, departments continued to follow different practices in data formatting and metadata annotation. Without standardized protocols, interoperability — especially for real-time services — remained limited.

  2. Ecosystem development: Although partnerships with universities and start-ups were growing, they remained ad hoc. İBB lacked a formal structure to manage these relationships over time, which limited its scale and sustainability.

  3. Digital literacy and public awareness: Many citizens were still unaware of the platform’s existence or how to use it. Bridging this gap required more than communication — it required investment in public education and user-friendly design.

These frictions did not nullify the platform’s achievements, but they did reveal the ongoing tension between ambition and operational reality. For Dr. Özgüner, they reaffirmed that open data was not a one-time project, but a long-term shift in how government works — and with whom it works.

Conclusion / Further Reflections

By 2025, İstanbul’s Open Data Platform had grown into more than just a digital service — it had become a symbol of institutional change. For Dr. Erol Özgüner and his team, it reflected a broader shift in how public value could be created in the digital age. But even as the platform matured, the underlying question remained: could open data truly transform governance in a political and institutional context still marked by volatility?

Across the world, data has become the lifeblood of digital societies. Governments, sitting on vast stores of operational and administrative data, hold a unique position — able to catalyze innovation, drive efficiency, and improve public service delivery. But unlocking this value requires more than uploading spreadsheets. It requires legal safeguards, data literacy, political backing, and institutional capacity.

İBB’s leadership recognized this. The municipality began investing in better data infrastructure, more frequent updates, and clearer protocols to ensure both access and accountability. Legal reforms were introduced to clarify responsibilities and protect privacy. Strategic partnerships with academic institutions and technology firms helped build capacity, while public campaigns were launched to promote data literacy and citizen engagement.

For Dr. Özgüner, the human dimension was always central. “It is very important to encourage our young people to play a role in the world of technology and to combine their interests and professionalism at this point,” he remarked in a public address. “Our most important resource is people. That is why it is very important to train people in technology and to increase data literacy.”

The broader vision was not just about technical progress — it was about cultivating a culture of openness, one that could endure beyond political cycles. Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s support gave the initiative its initial legitimacy, sending a strong signal that transparency was a core value of the new administration. His public endorsement helped departments overcome hesitation and gave technocrats like Özgüner the space to act.

Yet, digital reforms are never immune to politics. The arrest of Mayor İmamoğlu in March 2025 has raised some concerns about the resilience of open government efforts. Still, several key lessons emerge from the İBB experience:

  1. Political leadership and institutional will are essential: Without clear mandates and vision, platforms often stall or become token gestures.

  2. Open data fosters collaboration: By making information accessible, governments invite participation from researchers, entrepreneurs, and civil society, creating opportunities for co-production and innovation.

  3. Data-driven governance is more effective governance: Particularly in cities like İstanbul, where complexity and scale require rapid and evidence-based decisions, open data supports better outcomes.

However, these gains can only be sustained if digital innovation is grounded in democratic norms, strong legal frameworks, and effective, transparent institutions. Open data is not apolitical. It thrives in environments where information flows freely, dissent is tolerated, and institutions are accountable. 

In the end, İstanbul’s Open Data Initiative conveys a dual message: one of possibility and one of caution. It demonstrates what can be achieved when leadership, technology, and civic ambition align. However, it also reminds us that without institutional safeguards, even the most advanced platforms remain susceptible to political disruption.

For public servants like Dr. Özgüner, the work continues — not only in maintaining the platform but also in defending the values it represents: transparency, participation, and public trust in the digital age. 

References

  • Chourabi, H., Nam, T., Walker, S., Gil-Garcia, J. R., Mellouli, S., Nahon, K., & Scholl, H. J. (2012). Understanding smart cities: An integrative framework. 45th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS).

  • Davies, T. (2019). The state of open data: Histories and horizons. African Minds.

  • Janssen, M., Charalabidis, Y., & Zuiderwijk, A. (2012). Benefits, adoption barriers, and myths of open data and open government. Information Systems Management, 29(4), 258-268.

  • Kassen, M. (2013). A promising phenomenon of open data: A case study of the Chicago open data project. Government Information Quarterly, 30(4), 508-513.

  • Meijer, A., Curtin, D., & Hillebrandt, M. (2014). Open government: Connecting vision and voice. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 80(2), 305-320.

  • Ubaldi, B. (2013). Open government data: Towards the empirical analysis of open government data initiatives. OECD Working Papers on Public Governance, No. 22.

  • Zuiderwijk, A., Janssen, M., Choenni, S., Meijer, R., & Alibaks, R. (2014). Socio-technical impediments of open data. Government Information Quarterly, 31(1), 10-17.

  • Çelik, E., & Tabakoğlu, H. (2021). Türkiye’de Yerel Yönetimlerde Açık Veri Uygulamaları: İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi Örneği. Bilgi Yönetimi Dergisi, 4(1), 22–39. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1649013

  • KONDA Research & Consultancy. (2020). Türkiye’de toplumun kurumlara güveni [Public trust in institutions in Turkey]. https://konda.com.tr

  • KONDA Research & Consultancy. (2022). Yerel yönetimlerden memnuniyet araştırması [Satisfaction with local governments survey]. https://konda.com.tr

  • OECD. (2022). Building trust to reinforce democracy: Main findings from the 2021 OECD survey on drivers of trust in public institutions. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/b407f99c-en

  • Sayıştay Başkanlığı. (2022). Yerel yönetimler genel değerlendirme raporu 2022 [General evaluation report on local governments]. https://sayistay.gov.tr