Civil society members rotation within Steering Committee [OGP Consultation]

At the Brasilia conference, the OGP community discussed the best mechanism on rotation of the civil society members of the OGP Steering Committee. A group of volunteers and the CSO members of the Steering Committee then captured their thinking in this draft consultation note [below] that we are sharing with you for comments and feedback. The volunteers that contributed were Alison Tilley (South Africa), Kim Smouter (Belgium), Emilene  Martinez (Mexico) and Galib Abasov (Azerbaijan). The process for rotation has four big steps over a period of two months:

• Announcement: A note describing rotation process, criteria for selection and anticipated needs for the coming OGP year published on the OGP website, the civil society site (once ‘up’) and the civil society mailing list.
• Nomination: Extensive nomination form as well as written endorsements can be submitted and will be published online.  In parallel open invitation for selection committee volunteers to present themselves.
• Selection: Selection committee will assess and rank candidates using criteria and needs stipulated in announcement note, final candidates will be presented to and endorsed by civil society SC members.
• Accountability: Selection committee publishes account of their process, deliberation and choice to the broader OGP community.

The most obvious difference is the change to using a selection committee over voting. The OGP community feel this provides the best opportunity to really make an in-depth match between the needs identified and the qualities of the candidates. The original idea of one person voting per country brings the problem of how to identify and select one person as a representative of the diversity of civil society in his/her country. Everyone is invited to send written comments and suggestions to maassenpaul@gmail.com within the next 30 days. The consultation period will end on November 20, after which the comments received will be discussed by the civil society members of the 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....

Rotation Note for Consultation