In order to address the COVID19 Pandemic, the Criteria and Standards Subcommittee approves the following guidelines for 2020:

• Members that are due to submit a new action planAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... in 2020 and are on track to complete implementation of their 2018-2020 action plans by 31 August 2020 may use the extended delivery window and submit their new action plan no later than 31 December 2020. 
• Alternatively, members expecting to face constraints in implementation and co-creation of action plans and due to submit a new action plan in 2020, may decide to switch to the odd year cohort and submit their new action plan in 2021. This can be done in line with the regular annual action plan delivery calendar, without acting contrary to process due to the late submission. Members are requested to notify their Support UnitThe OGP Support Unit is a small, permanent group of staff that work closely with the Steering Committee and the Independent Reporting Mechanism to advance the goals of the Open Government Partnership.... representative at the earliest possible if they choose to follow this option.
• Members that take the above option and decide to switch cohorts and submit their next action plan in 2021 may also extend the implementation period for their 2018-2020 action plans by 12 months, i.e. until 31 August 2021, to address potential delays in implementation. In order to do this, members will have to inform their Support Unit representative and provide an updated action plan with the extended end dates for affected milestones by 31 August 2020.
• Members that submitted an action plan in 2019 will also be allowed to extend their implementation period for 12 months, i.e. until 31 August 2022, in order to address potential delays in implementation. For members opting for this, the next action plan will also be due by 31 August 2022. In order to do this, members will have to inform their Support Unit representative and provide an updated action plan with extended end dates for affected milestones by 31 August 2020 .
• The submission deadlines for End-of-Term Self Assessment Reports will be moved in accordance with the agreed shifts to action plan submission and completionImplementers must follow through on their commitments for them to achieve impact. For each commitment, OGP’s Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) evaluates the degree to which the activities outlin... dates.
• The IRM will take into account the constraints imposed by the current situation, adapt their review process, encourage the use of online tools to carry-out the assessment of action plans, and adjust work schedules when necessary.