Data Sharing Initiatives and Data Spaces in Switzerland

There are already over 100 data sharing initiatives active in Switzerland, a large proportion of which are located in public-law or highly regulated sectors such as research (Open Science), public administration or healthcare. On the other hand, the participation of the private sector is considered insufficient, which could indicate untapped potential or a lack of knowledge about existing initiatives.

Data quality and long-term financing as a challenge

The greatest challenge, which over 80% of the initiatives surveyed rate as «very important», is data quality. Other central hurdles include ensuring operations, data security and compliance, interoperability and building trust. The biggest long-term obstacle is sustainable financing. While most initiatives are currently based on structured factual data, the enormous potential of personal and unstructured data, which is crucial for applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI), remains largely untapped. In order to overcome these difficulties, increased cooperation, the implementation of pilot projects that demonstrate the benefits and financial incentives are necessary. Especially in the private sector, incentivization is often more important than mere trustworthiness in order to encourage companies to participate in data ecosystems.

The Swiss data ecosystem pursues the ambitious goal of promoting the multiple use of data by actors from business, science, administration and the public in a trustworthy framework. This project, commissioned by the Federal Council and implemented by the Digital Administration Switzerland (DVS), focuses on the development of an overarching architecture, governance rules and legal foundations, which are to be validated by concrete prototypes.

Five factors for a successful Swiss data ecosystem

• Firstly, it is important to create a common understanding of data ecosystems and their benefits among all stakeholders, especially in politics and the public.

• Secondly, the added value must be demonstrated through concrete, value-adding applications that are supported by companies, administrations or research institutions and implemented as services.

• Thirdly, it is crucial to consider data as products that are visible, accessible, and available to users in standardized and interoperable formats, including harmonized semantic descriptions (metadata).

• Fourthly, trustworthy basic infrastructures for data and digital identities must be established, enabling fundamental data such as geo- and register data, as well as secure digital identification of organizations and individuals.

• Fifthly, reliable legal, financial, and technical frameworks are required in the long term, allowing the involved stakeholders to agree on binding rules for their collaboration and to ensure sustainable financing.

To realize these success factors and enable a thriving data ecosystem, the study proposes concrete recommendations. It is of utmost importance to invest in data literacy and education, in particular through the training of data stewards, who act as important intermediaries between data providers and users. In parallel, a "Radar Data Ecosystem Switzerland" should be established for regular monitoring of progress, in order to highlight successful initiatives and their benefits.

Specific Use Cases in Focus

A pragmatic, use case-driven approach should be pursued by supporting data users in the development and validation of prototypes that demonstrate a clear added value. In this context, the exploration and development of effective incentive models for data providers is crucial, whether through financial incentives, reciprocity (access to data from other organizations), or access to analyses derived from the shared data. In addition, the concept of data commons should be promoted to strengthen the joint maintenance and use of data as a common good, ensuring governance that fairly distributes contributions and revenues and prevents misuse.

Technically, the definition of standards for metadata is essential, enabling a precise description of data products, including quality aspects and terms of use. In addition, the automation of data governance should be advanced through concepts such as "Data Contracts", which, as machine- and human-readable agreements, define the quality and structure of data products, thus ensuring reliable data exchange.

A digital basic infrastructure is needed

Priority investments should be made in a national digital basic infrastructure (Digital Public Infrastructure, DPI) for fundamental data such as geo- and register data, which should serve as a public good for innovation. At the same time, the development of digital identities for organizations, building on existing trust infrastructures such as the E-ID, is of high importance in order to simplify identification and authentication in data spaces and to strengthen trust. Finally, a robust community of Swiss data sharing initiatives must be built in order to strengthen networking and enable joint political advocacy.

A comprehensive national data strategy with clear goals and a roadmap for the long-term development of the data ecosystem is essential. For this purpose, suitable legal foundations for data use must be created or adapted, analogous to the data legislation of the EU (Data Governance Act, Data Act, etc.), in particular with regard to the secondary use of personal data. And last but not least, long-term, holistic financing of the data infrastructures must be ensured, possibly through a dedicated data infrastructure fund, in order to avoid inefficient fragmentation of funds.

The establishment of a trustworthy and functioning data ecosystem in Switzerland is a complex but essential task that requires sustainable cooperation across all sectors in order to unlock the full potential of digitization for the benefit of society.