Local Roundup | March 2025

Here’s our monthly roundup of updates from the OGP Local community for March 2025. Check out previous roundups!

New Action Plans

This month, three new members delivered their first action plans, while Elgeyo Marakwet (Kenya) submitted its third Action Plan reaffirming its dedication to open government. 

New members commitments towards open government:

• Elgeyo Marakwet (Kenya)’s Action Plan focused on improving the procurement process, establishing physical and virtual platforms for public consultation forums and workshops, and enhancing better access to government information via online platforms including FAQs.
• Metsamor (Armenia)‘s Action Plan committed to public participation with the introduction of Participatory Budgeting and the establishment of a Young Ambassadors Network. 
• San Jeronimo (Guatemala)’s Action Plan seeks to improve its Municipal Public Policy Guidelines, implement Participatory Budgeting and promote “San Jerónimo 2030″, the Local Economic Development Plan.
• Kyiv (Ukraine)‘s Action Plan committed to develop a Procedure for Public Consultations, create new spaces for Public participation and improve its online public services
• Medellín (Colombia)’s Action Plan aims to revitalize Medellín’s Participatory Budget process by integrating open government principles, and to strengthen district transparency through citizen participation by expanding Medellín’s youth club network.

OGP Action Plans Progress

• Zvyahelsk, Orzhytsk, and Kyiv (Ukraine) local councils approved their OGP Local Action Plans with the support of the Association of Ukrainian Cities  and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.
• Kakamega (Kenya) announced publicly the launch of its OGP Local Action Plan 2025 and the Public Participation and Civic Education Policy aiming to enhance transparency, accountability, and citizen engagement within the county.
• Navarra (Spain) organized an event to promote and showcase its OGP Local Action Plan featuring commitments to public participation, transparency and inclusion.
• Elbasan (Albania) held several public meetings with civil society, media, the Municipal Council and NDI representatives and organised a survey with 16 respondents to co-create its Action Plan.
  
• Buenos Aires (Argentina) officially announced an open call for initiatives and projects as part of its co-creation process for its 4th OGP Local Action Plan, after relaunching the Open State Roundtable with representatives from government and civil society.
• Aragón (Spain) held a meeting to present its second Action Plan showcasing commitments towards the inclusion of elderly and rural populations and improvement of participatory mechanisms.
• Cordoba Province (Argentina) advanced the Open Government agenda with Regional Communities, signing a commitment to promote data openness and access to information at the local level in 2025.
• The City of Kyiv has started implementing a local action plan by exchaging on best international practices in the field of civic education and public consultations from OGP Local members Timisoara, Vinnytsia, Glasgow, and the State of Goiás.

Showcasing Local Members Commitments

• The Regional Council of Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima (Morocco) presented its Citizen Budget using clear language and interactive tools to make public finances more accessible and foster citizen engagement.
  
• Tagbilaran (Philippines) organised two Open Budget Webinar Sessions to inform CSOs about the budgeting process and encourage active participation in governance, as part of their OGP Local action plan. 
• In Chihuahua (Mexico), the Mayor, Representatives of business organizations and Members of civil society signed an Open Government Declaration to reinforce transparency and the fight against corruption. This highlights previous successes such as the participatory budgeting process where more than 84,000 citizens participated. 
• The State of Goias (Brazil) promoted the submission of two OGP commitments on Public Governance to the Open Gov Challenge taking a step forward towards public transparency, social participation and citizen education.
• As part of efforts to scale Open Government at the local level in Nigeria, Centre LSD launched a two-day workshop to develop the Local Action Plan for Abaji Area Council, creating a two-year roadmap for implementing Open Governance principles.
• Kakamega (Kenya) launched the e-Parliament Integrated Hansard System, implementing its commitment to County Assembly Openness.
• Kaduna (Nigeria) and Sekondi Takoradi (Ghana) attended the annual CoST Manager’s workshop where the Ghanaian member was awarded for their success towards establishing a constructive dialogue between government, private sector and civil society regarding infrastructure delivery. 
• Cordoba Province (Argentina) launched a public consultation to identify needs in open data and public information which will strengthen the Open Management Portal.
• The mayor of Ouelle (Côte d’Ivoire) participated in the “Forum National sur l’Engagement Citoyen et la  Bonne Gouvernance” held in Abidjan and highlighted the importance of citizen ownership and engagement for successful local projects.
• Nuevo León launched a guide to promote equality and create safe spaces in the tourism sector ahead of the 2026 World Cup. 

Opportunities

• OGP launches the “Civil Society Innovations for Open Government” Grants for Eastern Partnership OGP members, with the support of the European Union. Apply by April 10, 2025 with a proposal on how to develop innovative tools and public engagement techniques. 
• Check out the Call for Proposals to Support the Implementation of Reform Commitments in the 2023-2025 Ukraine and Moldova OGP Action Plans, supported by the EU.

• Registrations are now open for the 24th Annual Congress of the International Observatory of Participatory Democracy (IODP) to be held in Córdoba (Argentina) from May 21 to 23. 
• On March 20, members of the Africa-MENA Network of Open Local Governments came together for its second webinar to talk about Citizen Participation at the Local Level and how the municipality of Tétouan (Morocco) has successfully institutionalized citizen participation. Watch the session recording here! 

Meet The Open Challenge

The number of local governments joining the Open Gov Challenge keeps growing! Check out the latest Open Government Challenge commitments submitted:

• Co-Create Initiatives for Climate Change Mitigation and Resilience (Tarkwa Nsuaem, Ghana)
• Strategy to Combat Climate Change (Kakamega, Kenya)
• Increase Public Participation in Government Decision-Making (Kakamega, Kenya)
• Co-Create an Access to Information Law for the Province (Córdoba Province, Argentina)
• Increase the Accessibility and Use of Open Data (State of Goiás, Brazil)
• Increase Access to Information (Santiago, Chile) 
• Improve Public Participation in the Budgeting Process (San Jerónimo, Guatemala)
• Improve Accountability in the Use of Artificial Intelligence (Austin, USA)
• Increase Inclusion in the Participatory Budgeting Process (Bar, Montenegro)
• Evaluate Compliance with the Access to Information Law (Lisbon, Portugal)
• Expand Public Participation Spaces for Innovation (Madrid, Spain)
• Citizen Assembly on Climate Change (Navarra, Spain)
• Local Plans for Climate and Sustainable Energy Strategies (Navarra, Spain)