Kyrgyz Republic Joins the Open Government Partnership
BISHKEK, KYRGYZ REPUBLIC – November 21, 2017 – The Open Government Partnership (OGP) is excited to announce the Kyrgyz Republic has become first country in Central Asia to join the partnership, an international platform of 74 countries and 15 subnational governments.
OGP is a multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. OGP aspires to support both government and civil society reformers by elevating open government to the highest levels of political discourse, creating a supportive community of like-minded reformers from countries around the world.
“We are very proud to become part of Open Government Partnership. It is a great honor to be the first country in Central Asia, as well as a great responsibility to take this important path,” said Prime Minister Sapar Isakov. “In the Kyrgyz government, we strongly believe that only openness and transparency will lead us towards sustainable development. Successes in economy, improving investment climate, and further building a democratic society, as well as trust in our work entirely depend on our progress in ensuring open, accountable and transparent governance. We are committed to ensuring greater access to information and open data policy as well as transparent procurement and effective and responsive public services.”
“We are excited to announce that Kyrgyz Republic will be the first country in Central Asia to join OGP,” said OGP CEO Sanjay Pradhan. “This is an important step forward for Kyrgyz Republic, as it strengthens democratic processes through openness and transparency and builds citizen trust in government. We look forward to supporting them in their co-creation process and bringing open government to a new corner of the world.”
“A global community of reformers at the Open Government Partnership now has the honor to be joined by the Kyrgyz Republic,” said Tea Tsulukiani, the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Georgia and OGP’s current government co-chair. “We strongly believe that by joining OGP, we can find more inspiring ways to improve lives of our citizens as we shape the way forward for our countries. Georgia, as a chair of OGP, stands ready to share its experience and support to the Kyrgyz Republic to advance open government reforms.”
The government of Kyrgyz Republic, led by the Prime Minister, will now commence the process of co-creating a National Action Plan with civil society. After an extensive consultation and co-creation process, it will begin implementing its Action Plan on August 31st, 2018, over a period of two years.
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For questions or to set up interviews, please contact Rachel Ostrow, communications officer: rachel.ostrow@opengovpartnership.org
About OGP:
Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a unique multilateral initiative aimed at securing concrete commitments from governments to promote transparency, increase civic participation, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to make governments more open, effective, and accountable to citizens around the world.
OGP was formally launched on September 20, 2011, on the sidelines of a UN General Assembly meeting, when eight heads of state, along with an equal number of civil society leaders, endorsed the Open Government Declaration and published the first cohort of OGP National Action Plans with specific open government reform commitments. OGP has since grown to include over 70 national governments (representing a third of the world’s population), 15 subnational entities, seven multilateral bodies, and hundreds of civil society organizations. OGP’s Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) holds governments accountable for their commitments by producing thorough, impartial reports that track progress on National Action Plans.
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