JAKARTA, Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) will introduce a raw data collection and sharing portal to facilitate the public, particularly researchers and postgraduate students, conducting research and accelerating the innovation process. UMS vice-chancellor (Research and Innovation) Professor Dr Rosalam Sarbatly said the open data project is funded by the Erasmus+ European Union grant and is expected to be completed and ready for use next year. He said this open data portal allows researchers to access data in various fields such as social sciences, biodiversity, and ecological studies in Sabah for research purposes without the need to go into the field. 'Through this portal, data owners will retain copyright or receive recognition for their contributions to innovations produced using their data,' he said. He spoke to Bernama after a sharing session titled 'Open Science in Asia: Driving Innovation, Collaboration and Transparency' at the 2024 Indonesia International Book Fair (IIBF) at the Jakarta Conventio n Centre (ICC) today. Rosalam said the open data development in Asia is a collaborative effort of five countries: Malaysia, India, the Netherlands, Finland, and Slovenia as well as eight higher education institutions, including Universiti Malaya (UM) and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). He said the initiative is also an effort to develop open science in Asia, popularise the field, and ensure that research data can be widely used through the application of big data and artificial intelligence analytics. According to Rosalam, the open data concept also enabled the development of COVID-19 vaccines during the pandemic, as data related to the virus was shared among countries involved in the vaccine development worldwide. IIBF 2024, which kicked off yesterday, will be held until Sunday. Source: BERNAMA News Agency