Central Data Catalog

INDEPTH Data Repository

The INDEPTH Data Repository is an online, free-access archive of fully documented, high-quality datasets from INDEPTH member HDSS centres. Its goal is to enable INDEPTH member HDSSs and associated researchers to contribute and share HDSS datasets with the scientific community in support of the Network's mission. Every dataset is documented, using an internationally accepted metadata standard developed by the Data Documentation Initiative (DDI), enabling data users to quickly identify and obtain the data they require. The use of digital object identifiers (doi) promotes proper citation of data sets by data users and facilitates the recognition of the efforts by the INDEPTH Network to make this valuable resource of population and health data for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) available.

Why INDEPTH Data Repository?

“Science is based on building on, reusing and openly criticising the published body of scientific knowledge. For science to effectively function, and for society to reap the full benefits from scientific endeavours, it is crucial that science data be made open.” In this statement the authors of the “Panton Principles” elucidated the fundamental basis for the expectation from a growing body of scientists, research funders, and indeed the general public, that the data underlying published research or generated by research projects should be shared in the public domain and thus freely accessible. Sharing research data can add value to the data at little cost by, for example, using the data to answer questions not anticipated by the original research, or facilitating meta-analyses by pooling similar data from many sources. Individuals who participate in and taxpayers who directly or indirectly support research are justified in expecting that the maximum benefit will be obtained from the research.

In response to a recent joint statement by funders on the sharing of public health research data, the INDEPTH Executive Director, stressed in a reply , the importance of ensuring that the means and capacity to share and actively participate in the analysis of those data are in the hands of those who generate the data and not only in those who want to analyse it. The INDEPTH Data Repository will be the first data repository that specialises in longitudinal individual level data from LMICs and presents an opportunity to exert a powerful and sustained influence on the availability of well documented and high quality longitudinal individual level exposure and cause specific mortality data from LMICs where such data has traditionally been difficult to obtain. The lack of research data management skills and capacity is generally acknowledged to be a major factor in why such data is not more generally available. As far back as 2006 the INDEPTH Network has taken important steps to address this through the establishment of the ISHARE project with core support funding from Sida/Research Cooperation Unit, Hewlett Foundation, Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation and Wellcome Trust. ISHARE has recently been expanded into ISHARE2 as part of a Strategic Award funding from the Wellcome Trust, to:

• Enhance the research data management capacity of INDEPTH member centres and enable them to develop, document, extract, harmonise and quality-assure analytical datasets from their operational databases.
• Lead a major expansion in INDEPTH data sharing by establishing and maintaining this INDEPTH Data Repository.
• Strengthen and maintain the skills, procedures and infrastructure necessary to assure quality and responsibly share longitudinal datasets of public health importance with the scientific and policy community.
• Support the building of data management capacity for the Network by providing course content and placements for students and trainees in research data management.