Inception Report – Action plan – Abuja, Nigeria, 2021 – 2022
- Action Plan: Action plan – Abuja, Nigeria, 2021 – 2022
Overview
Name of Evaluator
Stanley Achonu
Member Name
Abuja, Nigeria
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... Title
Action plan – Abuja, Nigeria, 2021 – 2022
Section 1.
Compliance with
co-creation requirements
1.1 Does a forum exist?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
To meet the requirement of 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..., the Abuja Municipal Area Council as a member of the OGP Local Program constituted a Local Steering CommitteeThe Steering Committee is OGP’s executive decision-making body. Its role is to develop, promote and safeguard OGP’s values, principles and interests; establish OGP’s core ideas, policies, and ru... with equal membership from government and civil society.
Provide evidence for your answer:
A-REPORT-ON-THE-AMAC-OGP-WORKSHOP.docx
1.2 Is the forum multi-stakeholder?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The selection of government representatives on the committee was based on relevancy of departments to the implementation of commitments in the Action Plan.
The government representatives are as follows:
- 1. Head of Budget Department
- Head of Legal Department
- Head of Information Department
- Head of Works Department
- Government Point of Contact
The selection of non-government representatives on the committee was based on the relativity of their scope of work and focus areas to the commitments in the Action Plan.
- Africa Center for Leadership, Strategy and Development
- Action AidMore and better information about aid helps partner countries and donor institutions plan and manage aid resources more effectively, parliaments and civil society to hold governments accountable for t...
- BudgIT
- Partners West Africa Nigeria
- Dean Initiative
1.3 Does the forum hold at least one meeting with civil society and non-governmental stakeholders during the co-creation of the action plan?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
AMAC hosted a virtual meeting to discuss topical/thematic social issues to be featured in the AMAC Action Plan.
The Selection of the Steering Committee Members was done immediately after the development of the Action Plan, of which the selected members were actively involved in the development process of the Action Plan.
Provide references here (e.g. interviews):
https://www.google.com/amp/s/newsdiaryonline.com/csos-laud-amacs-open-government-partnership/amp/
https://suprememagazine.org/csos-laud-amacs-open-government-partnership/
Recording of the Virtual Meeting below
https://project-everyone.zoom.us/rec/share/ANZqOPSvctg1wuVyJEGxej_-os04zrKoFyfKBBRi64Loe8A0ldHCwVIsxwS65FUn.IqAT-5TiOlxj3uED
Passcode: 07$#.a+x
1.4 Has the action plan been endorsed by the stakeholders of the forum or steering committee/group?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
Yes, it has been endorsed by the Multi-Stakeholder Forum.
Upon 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... of the selection process, the Steering Committee reviewed and validated the commitments in the draft Action Plan.
Government Representatives:
- Head of Budget Department – Mustapha Babakura
- Head of Legal Department – Ayodele .G. Shoma
- Head of Information Department – Patience Olaloye
- Head of Works Department
- Government Point of Contact – Abiodun Essie
Non-Government Representatives:
- Africa Center for Leadership, Strategy and Development – Olayinka Martin
- Action Aid – Sani Ibrahim
- BudgIT – Henry Omokhaye
- Partners West Africa Nigeria – Ijeoma Igwe
- DEAN Initiative – Semiye Michael
Section 2.
Recommended practices
in co-creation
2.1 Does the government maintain a Local OGP website or webpage on a government website where information on the OGP Local process (co-creation and implementation) is proactively published?
Unclear
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The government maintains a webpage for OGP information on its website, but it does not contain sufficient information.
Provide evidence for your answer:
–
2.2 Did the government provide information to stakeholders in advance to facilitate informed and prepared participation in the co-creation processCollaboration between government, civil society and other stakeholders (e.g., citizens, academics, private sector) is at the heart of the OGP process. Participating governments must ensure that a dive...?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
At the initial stages, the government provided all relevant information to DEAN Initiative and the organization in turn engaged other non-government stakeholders to keep them informed of the processes. The outcome of this stakeholder engagement was increased interest in and support towards the OGP Process in AMAC resulting in funding for the retreat to develop the AMAC Action Plan and Select Steering Committee Members.
Provide evidence for your answer:
–
2.3 Did the government ensure that any interested member of the public could make inputs into the action plan and observe or have access to decision-making documentation?
No
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
AMAC worked directly with only civil society organizations that had previously worked with the council on civic participation and accountability issues.
Due to resource and time constraint, only Civil Society Organisations were invited to the retreat where the Action Plan was developed/drafted.
Provide evidence for your answer:
–
2.4 Did the government proactively report back or provide written feedback to stakeholders on how their contributions were considered during the creation of the action plan?
No
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The government published the relevant documents on its website and allowed only representatives of different stakeholder groups (civil society) to contribute to the action plan creation.
Provide evidence for your answer:
–
2.5 Was there an iterative dialogue and shared ownership between government and non-governmental stakeholders during the decision making process, including setting the agenda?
No
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
There was no iterative process. The government and civil society actors were hosted to a 3-Day Retreat where the action plan was developed and validated.
Provide evidence for your answer:
–
2.6 Would you consider the forum to be inclusive and diverse?
Somewhat
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The forum is inclusive and diverse as members represent otherwise marginalised groups – women and youthRecognizing that investing in youth means investing in a better future, OGP participating governments are creating meaningful opportunities for youth to participate in government processes. Technical ....
At the time of selection, there were no engagements with People Living With Disability, as such, this group is not represented in the forum
Provide evidence for your answer:
LIST-OF-STEERING-COMMITTEE-MEMBERS-INDICATING-YOUTH-GENDER-STATUS.docx
Section 3.
Initial evaluation
of commitments
1. 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... :
Improve citizens’ engagement and participation in the budget process
1.1 Is the commitment verifiable?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
An Example of such identifiable activity and measurable deliverables is the development and dissemination of a Citizens Version of the Budget.
1.2 Does the commitment language/activities clearly justify relevanceAccording to the OGP Articles of Governance, OGP commitments should include a clear open government lens. Specifically, they should advance at least one of the OGP values: transparency, citizen partic... to OGP values?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The commitment language speaks to the core values of the OGP – citizen participationAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, citizen participation occurs when “governments seek to mobilize citizens to engage in public debate, provide input, and make contributions that lead to m... More, improved service delivery, 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 accountability
1.3 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
will result in a change of the rules, practices or policies that govern a policy area, public sector and/or relationship between citizens and is binding or institutionalized across government or specific institution(s).
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
This commitment will ensure that information about the budget process is made available to citizens in an accessible and timely manner, so that citizens can make inputs across the budget cycle.
By increasing citizens’ awareness of the budget process, citizens will be equipped to make informed inputs to the various stages across the budget cycle, further improving accountability in the government’s budgets process and systems.
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