2023 Civil Society Steering Committee Selection

Updated June 26, 2023

Results of the 2023 Civil Society Selection

A call for candidates to fill four Civil Society Steering Committee seats was launched in February 2023 as the terms of Aidan Eyakuze, Blair Glencorse, Lysa John and Steph Muchai came to a close. 28 applications were received and reviewed by the Selection Committee. Following a thorough selection process, we are pleased to announce that Juan Carlos Fernandez Andrade (Fundación Corona), Blair Glencorse (Accountability Lab), Zukiswa Kota (PSAM South Africa) and Steph Muchai (International Lawyers Project) will join the OGP Steering Committee starting October 1, 2023. They will serve on the Steering Committee for three years.

Learn more about the selection process and see the full list of candidates and application materials here.

Co-Chair Selection

SC leadership consists of a revolving four-member co-chairmanship team (two from government and two from civil society) elected by members of the SC. The four co-chairs make up the Governance and Leadership Subcommittee (GL). SC co-chairs serve for a two-year term, with the first year as ‘incoming’ and the second as ‘lead’ chairs. The current co-chairs are the government of Estonia and Anabel Cruz of ICD Uruguay (Lead co-chairs).

We are currently recruiting two sets of Co-Chairs. The first pair of newly elected co-chairs will follow Estonia and Anabel Cruz and begin their one-year term on October 1, 2023. The second pair will begin as ‘Incoming’ chairs on October 1, 2023, and assume the role of ‘Lead’ chairs for one year on October 1, 2024.

All interested candidates are asked to submit a letter of candidacy outlining their proposed agendas by responding to the following guiding questions:

Civil Society co-chair candidacy guiding questions:

1. How would you support the implementation of OGP’s 2023–28 Strategy as Co-Chair? Are there specific priorities within the strategy that you would like to advance during your chair term?
2. How will you (and your organization/network) demonstrate leadership on open government at the international level during your chairmanship, and what actions will you take to foster a more cohesive leadership body within the Steering Committee?
3. How would you further advance the domestic open government agenda at the local/regional level in which you are primarily engaged, and lead by example during your chairmanship role?
4. As co-chair, what type of support do you anticipate needing from the other OGP co-chairs (both government and civil society) and from the OGP Support Unit?

The deadline to submit candidacy statements is September 5. Please address a letter of intent to the two current co-chairs and send to jaime.mercado@opengovpartnership.org by this deadline.

Overview of the OGP Steering Committee

The Steering Committee (SC) is OGP’s executive, decision-making body. Its role is to develop, promote and safeguard OGP’s values, principles and interests. It also establishes OGP’s core ideas, policies, and rules and oversees the functioning of the partnership.

The SC is composed of 22 members (11 from national governments and 11 from civil society), with parity maintained between the two constituencies. The SC has three standing subcommittees to support its work, the Governance and Leadership Subcommittee (GL), the Criteria and Standards Subcommittee (C&S) and the Thematic Leadership Subcommittee (TLS). Each subcommittee comprises equal numbers of government and civil society representatives drawn from the SC.

Some of the key responsibilities of the SC include:

• Set OGP’s agenda and direction with principled commitment to the founding nature and goals of the initiative;
• Lead by example through upholding OGP values, adhering to OGP processes to co- create and implement ambitious open government reforms, and fulfilling financial support of OGP.
• Advance OGP priorities through their participation in the Global OGP Summit, OGP regional and thematic events, and other international opportunities to promote open government;
• Actively participate in Steering Committee and Subcommittee meetings (in-person and virtually), with Ministerial representation when necessary (at least once per year).

SC members serve for a term of three years and are eligible to serve for a maximum of two consecutive terms. SC members seeking a second term must be reelected to stay on the SC. All SC terms begin on October 1 of the year in which they are elected. For more details on the functions of the Steering Committee, please refer to the OGP Articles of Governance.

Criteria to Run for a Civil Society Seat on the Steering Committee

General Criteria

Civil society members are selected and serve in their individual capacity. To ensure the highest standards of work, we are looking for candidates that model OGP principles by practicing high levels of openness, integrity and accountability.

Each civil society member of the SC must fulfill the two key responsibilities listed in the mandate:

• Perform the international governance role for OGP in the Steering Committee;
• And represent the concerns and interests of the global OGP civil society community in the Steering Committee.

The civil society member must be able to meet the following requirements:

• Dedicate up to ½ day a week to OGP – with intensity increasing around SC and OGP meetings.
• Available to travel internationally to represent OGP at high-level meetings, including up to two mandatory in-person SC meeting(s) per year.
• The working language of the SC is English; all members must be proficient.

Selection Criteria and Scoring

The skills outlined below serve as the selection criteria and will be scored as per the scoring criteria table in the Annex of the Civil Society Steering Committee Mandate and Selection.

Required Skills and Experience:

• Advocacy: Strong track record in powerfully and clearly articulating core open government issues, including at global and regional (political) fora;
• Representation: Proven ability to canvas and represent the interests of the civil society community with government or at multistakeholder fora;
• Political Acumen: Demonstrable experience in strategically engaging with senior government and civil society members and exercising sound political judgment;
• Leadership: Noteworthy leadership experience in civil society and recognition as a respected and legitimate actor in national, regional, and/or global civil society networks;

Desired:

• Sound technical expertise and strong track record in influencing policy processes and partnering with government – and proven ability to draw on that experience to support national (OGP) processes beyond their own country;
• Provide an informed international perspective on core open government issues to leverage global standards and/or partners;
• Track record as an effective board member, preferably with demonstrable experience chairing (sub)board meetings;
• Strong interpersonal skills (e.g. excellent communication skills, ability to exercise good judgment, thoughtful interactions with others)

Additional Considerations:

OGP values diversity and aims to select a diverse and geographically representative group of candidates. We welcome applications from those across experiences and backgrounds including gender, age, ethnicity and race, and differing abilities. Given the current composition of civil society SC members, we encourage applicants that are from and/or have experience working in the Africa, Asia-Pacific, and/or MENA regions, particularly at the local level. Thematic experience in one or more of the emerging thematic directions of the new strategy is also desirable (anti-corruption, digital governance, climate and environment, and inclusive public participation, which includes civic space and public accountability).

Timeline and Process

The selection of new members is undertaken by a Selection Committee and takes place through a transparent and participatory process that invites inputs from OGP’s civil society community and creates opportunities for engagement at each step.

The 2023 Selection Committee consisted of two members from the current civil society Steering Committee (Aidan Eyakuze, Twaweza; and Lucy McTernan, Scottish OGP), two volunteers from the broader OGP civil society community (Akhila Kolisetty, Namati; and Ilham Saenong, Hivos/Yayasan Humanis dan Inovasi Sosial), and a representative from the OGP Support Unit (Paul Maassen, Chief, Country Support).

For any questions on the process or timeline, please contact bianca.nelson@opengovpartnership.org.