Local Roundup | January 2025

Here’s our monthly roundup of updates from the OGP Local community for January 2025. If you missed any of the previous roundups, you can find them here!

As the year begins, five new local members are setting the stage for stronger transparency, accountability, and citizen engagement with their first local action plans. Take a look at their commitments!

• Baguio (Philippines) committed to institutionalizing the People’s Council, co-creating a pedestrian discipline manual, developing a waste tracking app, and creating SDG educational modules to empower students.
• Yoff (Senegal) committed to boosting citizen participation through participatory budgeting, enhancing inclusive education and infrastructure, transitioning to solar power with participatory oversight, and strengthening coastal protection via community-driven initiatives.
• Vitoria da Conquista (Brazil) committed to improving transparency and citizen engagement by creating an Ombudsman’s Panel, launching a digital space for municipal councils, and reforming the Transparency Portal for better access to public data and services.
• Pastaza (Ecuador) committed to implementing an environmental program with community engagement, launching digital portals for road monitoring, and establishing an entrepreneurship center to foster innovation through collaboration.
• Larena (Philippines) committed to creating a transparent procurement process by forming a multi-stakeholder oversight team and assessing and improving procurement practices to ensure better service delivery.

Strengthening Citizen Participation: Local Initiatives across the Globe 

OGP Local members leveraged diverse approaches—like co-creation workshops, youth councils, and participatory budgeting—to ensure that governance is not only more inclusive, but also more responsive to the unique needs of their communities. 

• Antigua (Guatemala) implemented 15 citizen consultation forums as part of the co-creation process for their first open government action plan, engaging 500 people.
• Metsamor (Armenia) held several co-creation sessions for their OGP Local action plan, including an event where 750 young participants shared their suggestions on engaging with and contributing to community life.
• Chihuahua (Mexico) is calling on youth aged 15-29 to apply for the Municipal Youth Council 2025.
• The Municipality of Gjakova (Kosovo) held a successful participatory budgeting session where citizens proposed nine key projects,  including sports field rehabilitation, children’s play areas, and assistive technology for blind people.
• DEAN Initiative and Centre LSD organized a two-day session with leaders from Abuja’s Area Councils (Nigeria) and citizen representatives to evaluate progress on citizen participation in budget processes and exchange innovative ideas for strengthening transparency and accountability.
• As part of its first OGP action plan, the Municipality of Dar Chaabane El Fehri (Tunisia) held an online session with  civil society representatives to present the trial version of the Consul Democracy platform for supporting citizen participation. 
• Greater Karak Municipality (Jordan) discussed challenges and opportunities in developing the city’s tourism sector with the local community. Attendees provided valuable suggestions for improving services and infrastructure, aiming to make Karak a more attractive and sustainable tourist destination.
• In Ouellé (Côte d’Ivoire), the City Council and the National Technical Studies and Development Office (BNETD) organized a three-day planification and report workshop to build the Local Strategic Development Plan hand-in-hand with civil society and City Council members.
• Peñalolén (Chile) engaged citizens in diverse initiatives such as environmental workshops for children, personalized support for visually impaired residents, and art therapy for seniors, promoting inclusion and sustainability.
  

Showcasing Achievements and Learnings in Open Governance

• Two projects from Greater Manchester (United Kingdom) were nominated for INetworks’ Innovation Awards: the GM Victims Gateway, a digital solution that reflects crime victims’ journeys and enables better use of data to inform decision-making, and the GM One Network, which aims to provide access to technology services across the region.
• Representatives from the State of Nuevo León (Mexico), Madrid City Council, and the Participatory Group shared their progress using different mechanisms and channels to interact with and involve people in their OGP Local action plans.
• The latest Scottish Government’s report on rural proofing reviews international approaches, highlighting the importance of stakeholder engagement and open participation in developing policies that address rural challenges.
  

MEET THE OPEN GOV CHALLENGE

As we get closer to the International Day of Clean Energy, consider developing or implementing a climate, environment, and/or energy transition roadmap, legislation or strategy using open government principles like Quintana Roo, which is committed to co-create an environmental governance chapter within the Strategic Plan for Sustainable Development of Quintana Roo, 2025-2050.