Open funding metadata - what is is and why it matters

Taskforce 2 of Working group on funding metadata


What is open funding metadata in research


Open funding metadata is open research information that refers to structured information on funding and grants. It typically includes the funder’s name or identifier, grant identifiers, and additional information about the grant, such as amount, beneficiaries and funding programme(s).


Why open funding metadata matters


Open funding metadata is essential for building a more trustworthy, equitable and efficient research ecosystem. When provided in structured, machine-readable formats and accompanied by persistent identifiers, it unambiguously links funding to the correct researchers, organizations, projects and outputs. This connection enables these resources to be discovered, evaluated and reused at scale. Furthermore, making this information openly available reduces administrative burden and reporting errors and improves interoperability (e.g. across repositories, CRIS and funder systems).

Open funding metadata delivers concrete benefits for various stakeholders across the research ecosystem:

  • Researchers gain enhanced discoverability of their work through clearer links between funded projects and outcomes. In time it may relieve researchers from the obligation to report the outputs of their funding to their funding agency as this information is openly available and can be harvested by funders themselves.

  • Funders receive transparent evidence of the reach and effectiveness of their investments because it allows them to monitor funding outcomes, make evidence-based decisions, track policy implementation and ensure accountability for their spending.

  • Publishers benefit from more complete metadata as it provides valuable insight into the financial support of the research they publish. It helps publishers verify the provenance and integrity of submitted articles, where funding metadata is increasingly seen as a ’trust signal’ for published content. It also enables them to better serve authors by improving the discoverability of their work.

  • Research institutions gain a clearer overview of their research activities, funding sources, and outcomes. Open funding metadata helps them demonstrate the impact of their research, streamline reporting and compliance processes.

  • Open Infrastructures benefit from the availability of open funding metadata to increase their coverage and data quality. They benefit from more efficient workflows and reduced duplication by connecting funders, institutions, and repositories through standardized metadata.

  • Society at large benefits from open funding metadata because by providing greater transparency, accountability and more efficient use of resources. Public access to information about how money is spent on research contributes to enhanced trust in science.


Key benefits of open funding metadata


  • Transparency – clear view of how funding is used
  • Attribution – proper recognition in research outputs
  • Impact Tracking – easier monitoring of funded outcomes
  • Collaboration – enables partnerships and reduces duplication
  • Accountability – supports compliance and reporting
  • Visibility – increases discoverability of contributions
  • Insight – data-driven decisions on trends and gaps
  • Interoperability – ensures seamless integration and exchange across systems and platforms

Examples