Open Government Partnership


The Open Government Partnership is a multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from national and subnational governments to promote open government, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. In the spirit of multi-stakeholder collaboration, OGP is overseen by a steering committee including representatives of governments and civil society organizations.

History

The Open Government Partnership was formally launched on September 20, 2011 on the sidelines of a UN General Assembly meeting during which Heads of State from 8 founding governments endorsed the and announced their along with an equal number of civil society leaders. The eight founding members also welcomed the commitment of 38 governments to join OGP. Since its creation, OGP has resulted in over 2,500 commitments made by 79 participating countries, covering a third of the world's population.
Just six months after its start, OGP had grown from eight action plans and 46 participating countries to 50 action plans and 54 participating countries. The meeting in Brasilia brought together countries and organizations united in their belief in the power of transparency, with participation from anti-censorship campaigners in Yemen to reformers using data on primary schools to improve education in India.
A total of 46 members had already published action plans containing over 300 open government commitments. According to then Minister of the United Kingdom's Cabinet Office responsible for public transparency and open data, Frances Maude, Britain sought to "further secure the foundations of OGP as a globally recognized and respected international initiative…. strengthen the role of civil society organizations, encouraging greater collaboration with governments to forge more innovative and open ways of working."
In 2013, OGP's thematic goals centered around Citizen Action and Responsive Government. In an era of hyperconnectivity, openness and transparency, as well as citizen participation and collaboration, are increasingly viewed as essential components of good governance.
With the adoption and implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by world leaders at a historic United Nations Summit, including Sustainable Development Goals 16 for the "promotion of peaceful and inclusive societies," 2015 marked a milestone for the future of development outcomes and open government. In October 2015, the Government of Mexico hosted the third OGP Global Summit in Mexico City emphasizing the theme of "Openness for All: Using the Open Government principles as key mechanisms to implement the post-2015 development agenda."
In early 2016, OGP launched a new pilot program designed to involve subnational governments more proactively in the initiative. Later in December 2016, the Government of France, in partnership with the World Resources Institute, hosted the fourth OGP Global Summit in the nation's capital, Paris, gathering 3000 representatives from 70 countries.

Objectives

OGP provides a :wikt:platform|platform for reformers inside and outside of governments around the world to develop initiatives that promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. OGP aims to secure concrete commitments from national and subnational governments that drive open government reform and innovation in an effort to push countries further in the areas of transparency, accountability, and citizen engagement. It is a voluntary partnership that countries opt to join and through which civil society organizations, in collaboration with government, can advance initiatives that they deem in line with their reform agendas.
Rather than establish a worldwide transparency ranking of countries, OGP provides support and encouragement to countries around the world as they champion ambitious new reforms and deliver on their promises "under the watchful eyes of citizens," The community of reformers is meant to "offer support to those in government that are willing and to create a hook whereby the conversations among government and civil societies can occur."
This relationship between government and civil society is the cornerstone of OGP. Governments are expected to actively collaborate with civil society when drafting and implementing country commitments, as well as when reporting on and monitoring efforts. The OGP process requires government to consult with civil society and citizens, and the Independent Reporting Mechanism assesses the quality of this consultation.
OGP can serve as a platform to construct a diverse coalition of civil society actors from a variety of disciplines.
The principles of OGP are best explained by the . As outlined in the declaration, participating countries are expected to adhere to the following principles:
OGP participating countries declare their commitment to:
Funding for OGP comes from participating countries, donors and development partners.
As a multi-stakeholder initiative, civil society participation is enshrined in OGP's foundational principles and management structures. Governments and civil society play an equally important role in managing the OGP through participation in the steering committee, OGP's executive management body, as well as at the national level.

Steering Committee

The OGP provides guidance and direction at the international level in order to maintain the highest standards for the initiative and ensure its long-term sustainability. It is composed of equal numbers of representatives of governments and civil society organizations. OGP's leadership regularly rotates by appointing a new government co-chair and a new civil society co-chair every year. Incoming government and civil society members of the steering committee are selected by their peers.

Subcommittees

Members of the OGP Steering Committee delegate work to the OGP Subcommittees. There are three subcommittees: 1) Governance and Leadership; 2) Criteria and Standards; and 3) Peer Learning and Exchange. The principle of parity is preserved in the Subcommittees as an equal number of government and civil society representatives serves in each one.

Thematic Working Groups

There are currently six OGP that contribute to peer exchange and learning across the partnership. The ultimate goal is to support the creation and effective implementation of more ambitious open government commitments in the OGP national action plans.
The OGP is a small, permanent secretariat that works closely with the steering committee to advance the goals of the OGP. It is designed to maintain institutional memory, manage OGP's external communications, ensure the continuity of organizational relationships with OGP's partners, and support the broader membership. It also serves as a neutral, third-party between governments and civil society organizations, ensuring that OGP maintains a productive balance between the two constituencies.

Independent Reporting Mechanism

– The IRM is the key means by which all stakeholders can track OGP progress in participating countries. The IRM produces biannual independent progress reports for each country participating in OGP. Progress reports assess governments on the development and implementation of their OGP action plans, as well as their progress in upholding open government principles. The reports also provide technical recommendations for improvements. These reports are intended to stimulate dialogue and promote accountability between member governments and citizens.

Civil Society Engagement

The Team works to broaden, strengthen and engage a strong civil society network to participate in OGP, particularly at the national level. The team supports national civil society actors to help them make better use of the OGP process – including the design, implementation and monitoring of OGP action plans – for achieving their own advocacy objectives.

Subnational Government Pilot Program

Launched in 2016, this pilot program seeks to extend the principles of OGP to the local level. 15 subnational governments were selected to participate in the pilot program and, with the support of the OGP Support Unit and steering committee, have developed national action plans in collaboration with civil society. They will actively contribute to peer learning and networking activities with other subnational governments and, like OGP's member countries, will be assessed by the IRM.

Co-Chairs

Mechanism

Eligibility Criteria

– In order to participate in OGP, governments must exhibit a demonstrated commitment to open government in four key areas, as measured by objective indicators and validated by independent experts. The four critical areas of open government: fiscal transparency, access to information, asset disclosure and citizen engagement. Countries can earn a total of 16 points for their performance in these four metrics, or 12 points if they are not measured in one of the metrics. Countries that earn 75% of the applicable points or more are eligible to join. For an eligible country to join, all that is required is a letter from a ministerial representative indicating agreement with the Open Government Declaration and intent to participate OGP, as well as the leading agency and an individual point of contact for future work.

Co-Creation

– OGP participating countries co-create a National Action Plan with civil society. The actions plans are "the driving device" for OGP as it is the instrument through which government and civil society develop their agreed reforms, or commitments, every two years. The set of commitments aim to advance transparency, accountability, participation and/or technological innovation. Countries, with the active involvement of civil society, are encouraged to tackle new and ambitious commitments as well as build upon past successes. Effective public consultation process during the development of action plans can help build broad support for commitments with a wider set of actors to rely on for successful implementation. OGP participating countries operate on a two-year action plan calendar cycle, whereby countries are continuously implementing their programs. The government must regularly report on its progress and work with civil society to monitor and achieve the agreed reforms. Progress is evaluated at regular intervals by an independent researcher appointed by the OGP's .

Global Summit

OGP participants gather regularly at regional and global events to share their findings in person and to strengthen international cooperation. The most significant of these events has been the Global Summit, held annually since 2012. At the 2013 Global Summit, the steering committee voted to skip the 2014 Summit and reconvene in 2015. In addition to providing spaces where participating countries and civil society groups could share information in person, OGP wanted to find a way to showcase standout efforts of global transparency leaders.
YearEventHostDates
2012The 1st OGP Annual MeetingBrasilia, BrazilApril 17–18, 2012
2013The 2nd OGP Annual MeetingLondon, United KingdomOctober 31–November 1, 2013
2015The 3rd OGP Global SummitMexico City, MexicoOctober 28–29, 2015
2016The 4th OGP Global SummitParis, FranceDecember 7–8, 2016
2018The 5th OGP Global SummitTbilisi, GeorgiaJuly 18–19, 2018
2019The 6th OGP Global SummitOttawa, CanadaMay 29–30, 2019

Open Government Awards

Criticisms

Azerbaijan

On March 2, 2015, three civil society groups in Azerbaijan submitted a letter detailing concerns about their ability to continue their work in the country. Under the Policy on Upholding the Values and Principles of OGP, also known as the Response Policy, adopted in 2014, on May 18, 2015, a report was completed detailing the steering committee's investigation into such concerns. As it found the concerns valid it also detailed further steps for the OGP to take. Despite working with the country and attempting to find a solution that would work for all parties, on May 4, 2016, Azerbaijan was listed as inactive with the Open Government Partnership. Azerbaijan had been a member of OGP since 2011.

Hungary

On July 9, 2015, representatives of Hungarian civil society submitted a requesting the Open Government Partnership's steering committee to take action regarding the behavior and attitude of the Hungarian government, claiming that the government had been active in propagating a smear campaign against civil society organizations, creating a culture detrimental to continued efforts by the country's NGOs. On December 7, 2016, the OGP Steering Committee received a letter from the Government of Hungary announcing its immediate withdrawal from the partnership. The Government of Hungary had been under review by OGP since July 2015 for concerns raised by civil society organizations regarding their space to operate in the country.

Turkey

On May 4, 2016, OGP submitted a resolution to degrade Turkey's membership status as 'inactive' within the coalition, if the government of Turkey does not draft the actionable plan to implement open government policy. The country, under the Presidency of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has jailed 152 journalists and shut down 174 media outlets so far for various charges, such as defamation and terrorism. The allegations surrounding the country's media crackdown hold that journalists are being targeted for voicing opposition against the president Erdoğan's authority. On September 21, 2016, OGP's steering committee approved the resolution, and declared Turkey's membership within the partnership as 'inactive.' Turkey was given a year of probationary period to develop National Action Plan, in consultation with the citizens and civil society, until steering committee proceeds a further review on the country's status. On September 21, 2017, OGP's steering committee withdrew Turkey from the partnership. It was the first time a country was withdrawn by OGP's decision. Hungary and Azerbaijan were withdrawn before Turkey, but the withdrawals were first demanded by each governments, before OGP made the final decision. The committee requested the Government of Turkey to publish a National Action Plan again and include citizens and civil society into the process of developing the plan.

Participants

National Governments

The following countries have met the minimum eligibility criteria and have joined:

  1. Afghanistan
  2. Albania
  3. Argentina
  4. Armenia
  5. Australia
  6. Brazil
  7. Bulgaria
  8. Burkina Faso
  9. Cabo Verde
  10. Canada
  11. Chile
  12. Colombia
  13. Costa Rica
  14. Côte d'Ivoire
  15. Croatia
  16. Czech Republic
  17. Denmark
  18. Dominican Republic
  19. Ecuador
  20. El Salvador
  21. Estonia
  22. Finland
  23. France
  24. Georgia
  25. Germany
  26. Ghana
  27. Greece
  28. Guatemala
  29. Honduras
  30. Indonesia
  31. Ireland
  32. Israel
  33. Italy
  34. Jamaica
  35. Jordan
  36. Kenya
  37. Kyrgyz Republic
  38. Latvia
  39. Liberia
  40. Lithuania
  41. Luxembourg
  42. Malawi
  43. Malta
  44. Mexico
  45. Moldova
  46. Mongolia
  47. Montenegro
  48. Morocco
  49. Netherlands
  50. New Zealand
  51. Nigeria
  52. North Macedonia
  53. Norway
  54. Pakistan
  55. Panama
  56. Papua New Guinea
  57. Paraguay
  58. Peru
  59. Philippines
  60. Portugal
  61. Romania
  62. Senegal
  63. Serbia
  64. Seychelles
  65. Sierra Leone
  66. Slovak Republic
  67. South Africa
  68. South Korea
  69. Spain
  70. Sri Lanka
  71. Sweden
  72. Tunisia
  73. Ukraine
  74. United Kingdom
  75. United States
  76. Uruguay

Inactive Countries

The following countries have been marked as inactive for acting contrary to the OGP process:
  1. Azerbaijan
  2. Bosnia and Herzegovina
  3. Trinidad and Tobago

    Local Governments


  1. Austin, Texas, United States
  2. Basque Country, Spain
  3. Bojonegoro, East Java, Indonesia
  4. Buenos Aires, Argentina
  5. Elgeyo-Marekwet, Kenya
  6. Iași, Romania
  7. Jalisco, Mexico
  8. Kaduna State, Nigeria
  9. Kigoma, Tanzania
  10. La Libertad, Peru
  11. Madrid, Spain
  12. Nariño, Colombia
  13. Ontario, Canada
  14. Paris, France
  15. São Paulo, Brazil
  16. Scotland, United Kingdom
  17. Sekondi-Takoradi, Ghana
  18. Seoul, South Korea
  19. South Cotabato, Philippines
  20. Tbilisi, Georgia

Eligible Countries

The following countries have demonstrated that they have met the minimum criteria of eligibility and are eligible to join OGP:

  1. Austria
  2. Belgium
  3. Bhutan
  4. Guyana
  5. Iceland
  6. Japan
  7. Mozambique
  8. Nepal
  9. Poland
  10. Slovenia
  11. Switzerland
  12. Timor-Leste

Withdrawn Countries

  1. Hungary
  2. Tanzania
  3. Turkey