Featured Commitment – Costa Rica
Country: Costa Rica
CommitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action...: Public Institution TransparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More Index
National Action PlanAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen...: 2013-14
In Costa Rica there is no transparency index that measures all State institutions according to the same standards, nor a local body that systematically publishes reports on the transparency of the management of each institution. During 2013, the Ombudsman conducted a pilot plan in which he developed an index to measure how transparent state agencies are, using criteria such as access to information, proper management of public resources, promoting citizen participationAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, citizen participation occurs when “governments seek to mobilize citizens to engage in public debate, provide input, and make contributions that lead to m... More and accountability. He applied the methodology to 44 public institutions. The evaluation showed that 50% publish rules in the institutional website, 70% do not disclose annual reports or the results of internal auditsInstitutional and legal frameworks are necessary for providing assurance of the integrity of financial information and of compliance with budgetary rules and procedure. Technical specifications: These..., and 68% do not share information about their pay grades.
At the time of this IRM progress report (September 2014), the final methodology to rank the institutions was pending scientific validation from a specialized institution. The Ombudsman, with whose unique resources the index was prepared, estimated that this action would cost about US $ 20,000, however lack of resources had held up the full completion of this commitment. “Rankings” have had a demonstrated impact on Costa Rican institutions. With due acceptance on behalf of the institutions and adequate support from the state in terms of promotion, this initiative could change the way in which government bodies manage themselves and encourage radical change in them. Read more in Costa Rica’s IRM report.