Administrative data

Administrative data are collected by governments or other organizations for non-statistical reasons to provide overviews on registration, transactions, and record keeping.

This enables administrative data, when turned into indicators, to show trends over time and reflect real world information.

[4] In recent decades administrative data on individuals and organization are increasingly computerized and systematic and therefore more feasibly usable for statistics, although they do not come from random samples.

[5] The appeal of administrative data is its ready availability, low cost, and the fact that it can span over multiple years.

[7] Linked administrative data allows for the creation of large data-sets and has become a vital tool for central and local governments conducting research.

[7] The Open Data Ottawa program was launched in 2010 in order to engage citizens, create transparency, reduce costs, and promote collaboration with the public.

The study revealed that through working together with actors (VCS organizations, social enterprises, and private businesses), Government departments' engagement with users increased the volume of output.

However, access to linked files with personal identifiers is allowed in cases with authorization and have security, such as encryption, applied.