Honduras End-of-Term Report 2016-2018

The Government of Honduras created a multi-stakeholder forumRegular dialogue between government and civil society is a core element of OGP participation. It builds trust, promotes joint problem-solving, and empowers civil society to influence the design, imple... with representatives from civil society, academia, government, and the private sectorGovernments are working to open private sector practices as well — including through beneficial ownership transparency, open contracting, and regulating environmental standards. Technical specificat... to design and follow up on the 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.... The most significant challenge was to provide continuity to the plan results and to improve 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... levels. The IRM researcher recommends broadening the scope and level of participation of civil society sectors in the multi-stakeholder forum.

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 (OGP) is a voluntary initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote 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, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. The Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM)The Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) is OGP’s accountability arm and the main means of tracking progress in participating countries. The IRM provides independent, evidence-based, and objective ... conducts yearly assessments of each OGP member’s activities to ensure that governments comply with their commitments. This report assesses the results of the period between June of 2016 and June 2018.

The Secretariat for General Coordination of Government (SCGG) coordinates the OGP process in Honduras. During the design and implementation of action plans, SCGG convened the Interinstitutional Council and Technical Committee (CTS), formed by 11 members: three representatives from the public sector, three from civil society, two from the private sector and three from the academia. During the first year, the organization Pastoral Social Caritas of Honduras took on the role of general coordination; during the second year, Universidad Jose Cecilio del Valle took on this role.

By the end of the action plan cycle, the implementation of commitments was low. The implementation of only four of thirteen commitments was higher during the second year of implementation, as compared with the first year. Despite funding from multiple international cooperation sources, no commitments were fully implemented.

The Government of Honduras published its self-assessment report on time[1]. The report included a summary and systematization of comments received during the socialization phase, and identified successes and challenges for the future. The Government of Honduras created the System for Monitoring of the Open Government Partnership in Honduras (SIMAGAH)[2]  to publish information related to 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... completion. The IRM researcher was given access to the system by the SCGG.

At the moment of writing this report, Honduras was in the second year of implementation of the action plan. Similar versions of six of the 13 commitments were incorporated in the 2018-2020 action plan.

Consultation with civil society during implementation

OGP member countries are expected to consult with civil society during the development and implementation of their action plans.

The Interinstitutional Council and Technical Committee (CTS) led the consultation process during the implementation phase. This multi-stakeholder entity is charged with securing the efficiency and effectiveness of planned activities for the development and implementation of the action plan. During this action plan cycle, CTS included 11 members: three from the public sector, three from civil society, two from the private sector and three from academia. During the implementation phase, recommendations and adjustments for commitment implementation were channeled through this space. Since the outset of the action plan, the CTS formed working groups with technical officers of the responsible agencies.

Table 2: Consultation process during implementation

Table 3: Level of public influence

The IRM adapted the International Association for Public ParticipationGiving citizens opportunities to provide input into government decision-making leads to more effective governance, improved public service delivery, and more equitable outcomes. Technical specificatio... (IAP2) “Spectrum of Participation” to apply to OGP. The table below shows the public influence in the action plan. The stages shown in the table are cumulative, from bottom to top. In the spirit of OGP, most countries should aspire for “collaborate”.

Following the first year of implementation, the CTS hosted 19 socialization events in seven cities across the country to disclose progress and preliminary results of the 2016-2018 action plan. As reported in the Government’s self-assessment, nearly 600 people participated in these events. CSO representatives interviewed for this report confirmed the development of these sessions, although were cautious to state that these events constitute a validation of commitments included in the plan. In the IRM researcher’s opinion, there was no evidence – in the SIMAGAH, OGP web portal or in the self-assessment report – of feedback or response from Government about public comments submitted during the socialization phase[3].

[1] Government of Honduras (2018). “End of term self-assessment report”. Available at: https://www.opengovpartnership.org/documents/honduras-end-term-self-assessment-report-2016-2018/

[2] Available at:  https://sgpr.gob.hn/SGPR.Admin2019/

[3] Government of Honduras (2018). “Socialization of the third open government action plan”. Available at: http://www.gobiernoabiertohonduras.org/index.php/p-accion-todos/iii-pagah-menuu/etapa-de-socializacion