Implementation of the international parameters of Open Parliament in the management of the Quito Metropolitan Council. (ECQTO0004)
Overview
At-a-Glance
Action Plan: Action plan – Quito, Ecuador, 2022 – 2023
Inception Report: Not available
Commitment Start: Mar 2023
Commitment End: May 2023
Institutions involved:
- Secretaría General del Concejo DMQ
- Secretaría General del Concejo DMQ
- Secretaría General del Concejo DMQ
- Fundación Ciudadanía y Desarrollo
Primary Policy Area:
Primary Sector:
OGP Value:
- Access to information
- Civic Participation
- Technology and Innovation for Transparency and Accountability
Description
Commitment ID
ECQTO0004
Commitment Title
Implementation of the international parameters of Open Parliament in the management of the Quito Metropolitan Council to ensure the promotion and accessibility of information, collaboration, and use of mechanisms for citizen participation.
Problem
The Council of the Municipality of the Metropolitan District of Quito wants to promote institutional transparency and parliamentary openness. In that sense, several efforts have been made in municipal regulations, transparency policies, and even in parliamentary transparency models; however, no policies, regulations, or programs of parliamentary openness and Open Parliament have been implemented. This management model goes beyond transparency, incorporating measures of accountability, citizen participation, ethics, and parliamentary probity.
Status quo
According to the report on legislative transparency of Latin American parliaments (Latin American Index of Legislative Transparency), no parliament exceeds 60% compliance with international standards of open parliament; there are also problems of misinformation and distortion of information on parliamentary management and openness. The civil society initiative "Ojo al Concejo - Quito" shows that it is necessary to make information transparent and implement Open Parliament policies and programs. Deficiencies in transparency and openness impact both the legitimacy, trust, and proper functioning of the municipal administration, as well as citizens who cannot adequately participate, demand effective accountability, access quality information, and have representatives that meet high standards of ethics and probity.
Action
Implement a model of Open Parliament in the Metropolitan Council of Quito that manages to enhance in all its facets the transparency and participation of citizens in those issues and problems that arise. Co-create an ordinance for the regulation of lobbying and prevention of conflicts of interest, involving a plurality of subjects, which belong to the entire municipal administration, both political representatives and municipal officials, as well as citizens. The initiative would seek to increase the indexes of transparency, participation, and trust of the people in their institutions.
How will the commitment contribute to solving the public problem described above?
The expected products and results were the following: Greater transparency and openness of processes for citizen participation in legislative and oversight processes. Better relationship between citizens and their representatives. Better controls and tools to prevent corruption in the parliamentary sphere. More information for the media to generate news about the management of the local parliament. Better regulations to be co-created with non-state sectors. Better regulations to prevent conflicts of interest and regulate lobbying in the city.
What long-term goal as identified in your Open Government Strategy does this commitment relate to?
The vision of the municipality is an institutional reference that promotes a consolidated open government model for public performance, based on the principles of transparency, availability of information, mechanisms for citizen participation, accountability, and social control; which affects the design of public policies and the evaluation of the management of municipal services, through participatory and collaborative processes, requiring channels and communication tools that reduce the gaps in the administration-citizen relationship, ensuring access to information in an easy, timely, reliable and free manner. In this sense, it seeks to promote open parliament, through access to public information in a proactive and transparent manner, including mechanisms for citizen participation and using information and communication technologies among the tools.
Primary Policy Area
Legislative Openness, Right to Information
Primary Sector
Legislature, Other/NA
What OGP value is this commitment relevant to?
| Access to information | Open parliament ensures that there is effective and easy access to information from local government legislative bodies. |
| Civic Participation | ● Increased transparency ensures greater citizen participation, transparent institutions are institutions that generate trust. |
| Technology and Innovation for Transparency and Accountability | ● The technological means are those through which the open parliament must provide the information and data coming out of the public institutions, the implementation of the project involves however the creation of technological platforms for the dissemination of information. |