Weekly Summary on Data Curation Preservation Issues: Budgets, Costs, Staffing and Skills.

Data curation and preservation are fundamental to ensuring the longevity, accessibility, and usability of digital materials. These processes encompass appraisal, metadata creation, storage, and long-term maintenance, but they are resource-intensive and demand both technological infrastructure and sustained financial investment. Their sustainability is therefore dependent on adequate budgets, transparent cost models, and the availability of trained staff with specialised expertise (Butters, Wilson & Burton, 2020)

One of the most significant barriers to effective preservation is budgetary limitation. Institutions frequently operate under restricted financial allocations, which prioritise immediate operational needs over long-term preservation. This often results in fragmented initiatives rather than comprehensive strategies. Inadequate funding undermines investment in essential infrastructure such as repositories, backup systems, and disaster recovery mechanisms (Ndhlovu & Matingwina, 2018). The absence of dedicated funding streams contributes to what scholars describe as data curation debt, where deferred investments accumulate into systemic risks that compromise sustainability (Butters et al., 2020)

The rising costs of digital preservation further complicate institutional responses. Preservation is inherently costly due to the need for continuous technological upgrades, licensing, and compliance with international standards. These costs extend beyond hardware and software to include staff training, metadata creation, and adherence to FAIR principles. Transparent cost models are essential for sustainability, yet many institutions underestimate the financial burden of preservation. The CESSDA SaW project underscores that costs vary depending on data volume, complexity, and institutional capacity, making accurate cost estimation critical for planning (CESSDA, 2017). Without such models, institutions risk underfunding preservation, leading to incomplete or failed initiatives

Staffing limitations represent another critical challenge. In many institutions, digital preservation responsibilities are distributed across multiple roles, diluting expertise and focus. In resource-constrained contexts, only a minority of staff are familiar with digital curation concepts, reflecting significant gaps in preparedness (Ndhlovu & Matingwina, 2018). This shortage undermines the ability to implement policies, monitor compliance, and adapt to technological changes effectively, leaving digital collections vulnerable to obsolescence

Beyond staffing numbers, the lack of specialised skills in areas such as metadata standards, repository management, and digital forensics poses a serious barrier. Effective preservation requires continuous professional development, yet training is often neglected due to budget constraints. This creates a cycle where limited funding exacerbates skills gaps, further weakening institutional resilience. Mosha and Ngulube (2023) emphasise that metadata literacy and technological expertise are essential for continuous preservation, discovery, and reuse of research data, but higher education institutions often lack personnel with these competencies. International collaboration and knowledge-sharing initiatives are increasingly recognised as vital to bridging these gaps and ensuring repositories remain interoperable and sustainable

The interplay of budgets, costs, staffing, and skills creates systemic vulnerabilities that threaten the longevity of digital collections. Underfunded institutions accrue preservation debt, while staff shortages and inadequate training reduce the effectiveness of existing investments. These weaknesses are particularly acute in developing contexts where external funding is scarce, and institutional frameworks remain fragile. Addressing these challenges requires integrated strategies: securing sustainable funding, adopting transparent cost models, investing in staff development, and fostering international collaboration to share expertise and resources

In conclusion, budgetary constraints, escalating costs, and deficits in staffing and skills represent interconnected challenges that compromise the sustainability of data curation and preservation. Institutions must recognise that digital preservation is not a one-off investment but a continuous commitment requiring financial planning, skilled personnel, and adaptive strategies. Without addressing these issues, the risk of losing valuable digital heritage remains high

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References

Ahmad, R., Rafiq, M., Khalil, M. F., & Khalil, M. H. (2025). Global overview of digital preservation staffing and skills: A systematic review. Information Development. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/02666669251354893

Butters, O. W., Wilson, R. C., & Burton, P. R. (2020). Recognizing, reporting and reducing the data curation debt of cohort studies. International Journal of Epidemiology, 49(4), 1067–1074. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyaa087

CESSDA SaW. (2017). Costs factsheet. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.255574

Mosha, N. F., & Ngulube, P. (2023). Metadata standard for continuous preservation, discovery, and reuse of research data in repositories by higher education institutions: A systematic review. Information, 14(8), 427. https://doi.org/10.3390/info14080427

Ndhlovu, P., & Matingwina, T. (2018). The state of preparedness for digital curation and preservation: A case study of a developing country academic library. IASSIST Quarterly, 42(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.29173/IQ929