OGP in the News – Week of September 5, 2016
A series providing a round-up of media attention received by the Open Government PartnershipThe Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a multi-stakeholder initiative focused on improving government transparency, ensuring opportunities for citizen participation in public matters, and strengthen... More throughout the world.
With the fourth OGP Global Summit fast approaching, it is little wonder that the OpenGov spotlight was directed this week at Paris—the host city of the event. The popular daily newspaper Libération released an article in which the Summit was cited as an example of the French capital’s tremendous growth in the Civic Tech sector. France also held its annual Ambassadors’ Week during which OGP received two important mentions—first by President François Hollande and then by Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Marc Ayrault in his closing speech. Both men spoke to the importance of transparency, which will be further underscored at the upcoming Global Summit. The speeches appeared on the websites of French embassies around the world. And finally, as part of France’s Open Data initiative, la mission Etalab posted a blog about the outcomes of last week’s Open Youth Academy in Pula, Croatia.
In the United States, a Foreign Policy article concluded that, while the U.S. promotion of democracy abroad has declined in recent years, OGP serves as a reminder that participation in democracy assistance programs persists: “The administration strongly backs multilateral initiatives that advance democratic norms, such as the Open Government Partnership.”
Also in the Americas, Brazil’s Prefecture of São Paolo website attracted a lot of views when it invited public commentary on the country’s most recent National Action Plan (NAP) and encouraged all interested parties to register for an open forum to discuss the NAP. Pulso Diario de San Luis reported that OGP’s Openness in Natural Resources working group met in Mexico to ensure that commitments for the 2016-2018 NAP overlap with the objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, stressed the importance of the intersection of these two agendas when she stated that “Open Government Partnership should put equality, defined as rightful ownership and access to public services such as health and mobility among others, at its core.”
On the other side of the world, the G20 Summit in Hanghzou, China came to a close, and Transparency International showcased the new Anti-Corruption Action Plan for 2017-2018 featuring OGP:
We will strengthen the work of the [Anti-Corruption Working Group], including improving our co-operation and dialogue with current partner organisations and new dialogue partners such as the Open Government Partnership, the World Customs Organisation and the Global Forum on TransparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More and Exchange of Information for TaxPlacing transparency, accountability, and participation at the center of tax policy can ensure that burdens are distributed equitably across society. Technical specifications: Commitments related to c... Purposes.
Meanwhile, coverage of looted Nigerian funds continued as The Punch and Uncova both published an article in which Executive Director of Africa Network for Environment and Economic JusticeTo address barriers that prevent citizens from having their justice needs met, OGP participating governments are working to expand transparency, accountability, and inclusion into all systems of justi... (ANEEJ) Rev. David Ugolor urged the Nigerian government to finalize its commitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action... to join OGP. Ugolor believes membership in OGP will place pressure on the Nigerian government to publicly disclose how it will spend the repatriated funds and dissuade further corruption.
In other news, freedominfo.org reported that OGP plans to discuss the complaint launched by the Alternative Information Center against Israel during the OGP Criteria and Standards Subcommittee meeting on September 20.
And in case you haven’t heard, the OGP-run Global Legislative Openness Week (GLOW) starts on September 12. In other words, this is your chance to GLOW with all of the OGP excitement!
Of course, we can’t catch everything in our news round-ups, so if you see we’ve missed something or think a particular story ought to be featured, please send it to jacqueline.mcgraw@opengovpartnership.org.