Official statistics portal of Latvia

Objectives

Instead of searching multiple systems or websites, a unified platform for all Latvia official statistics was needed to provide accurate, quick to find and easy to use statistical data according to the needs and interest of users.

The challenge

There are ~40 State administrative bodies providing the official statistics in Latvia. The Central Statistical Bureau is the largest statistical provider and the managing authority of the whole system. While the CSB official statistics were published on the institution’s homepage, the other statistical authorities often used their own information systems or websites to publish the available data.

It was necessary to create a unified platform for all official statistical institutions in Latvia to publish their data in predefined and publicly announced time. It was clear that the solution should include descriptive metadata, geospatial statistics, research data catalogue and other information required for statistical users. Even more, it should as well optimize the data input process and reduce the manual workload.

The Solution

Data is the new gold, therefore we had to build a safe and reliable solution to take good care of this treasure. The client already had a clear vision of how the Official statistics portal should be built, how it should look and to whom it should serve. Wunder just had to turn these great ideas into reality.

The system was built around open-source tools used in the world of statistics like PxWeb (used in Nordic countries) and spatial data exploration tool Stage2 (Statistics Slovenia). The team at Wunder created a custom Drupal module that allows managing PxWeb data through the familiar Drupal interface. Creating PxWeb data tables, importing data from multiple sources (CSV files, external databases), performing scheduled publishing tasks, syncing with Open Data websites is now as easy as managing Drupal content.

To make the website performant, content management and content presentation layers are separated into a React-based front-end application and a Drupal-based content management platform.

To ensure all data is safely stored and quickly displayed, a decoupled solution on Drupal 8 and ReactJS was created for the base. We built a new Drupal module for data input in the Nordic Data Model(different website, new window) – MS SQL databases. For storage and dissemination of statistical tables, the client approved the open-source solution PxWeb(different website, new window), which was integrated into the project.

As the statistical data is stored on multiple data libraries, it was important to ensure fast, accurate and specific data output. Elasticsearch engine in combination with Reactive Search and NextJS libraries were the right tools for the job.

And when it comes to data visualisation, a geospatial component was integrated to allow data display on a map. Our partner SunGIS enhanced the open-source solution built by Slovenia statistical institutions and supplemented it according to the client’s requirements.
The geospatial module data are aligned with INSPIRE(different website, new window) directives and automatically synchronizes with the whole data storage.

As the client has great experience in statistical data maintenance, the communication in the project was clear and easy. The most effective solutions were found through professional discussions combining the best practices and experience. Our development team even had a chance to expand their knowledge on several sector-specific tools and technologies.

The results

The goal was to create a smooth, intuitive, accessible and easy to use platform for both data users and data providers. We built a digital solution where all official Latvia statistics can be fluently found in one place. On top of that, the newly built solution works as an out-of-the-box data publishing system and can be applied to any statistical institution or country.

For the data providers, the system allows unsophisticated data input through predefined data tables and provides fast data import and export, as well as reduces manual work. The pre-publishing environment helps to ensure all data tables are in place, looks good and are publish-ready, thus reducing the risk of inaccuracy.

An automated data publishing calendar informs the users of recently published data as well as scheduled data publications. This option provides equal opportunities for all data users.

A powerful search engine provides top-notch search, filter, arrange and display functionality. In addition to being quick and accurate, it also ensures high data security.

Interactive data visualizations are created to show trends in data, while geospatial relationships can be viewed in the map browser, showing data display types like data bubbles or pie charts. And as the datasets are internally linked, the user journey in this data world can be endless, because the system will always provide related statistical information to discover.