Skip Navigation

OGP calls for post-2015 development framework based on ‘transparency, participation and accountability’

Joe Powell|

It has been a hectic few months in the world of open government reform. Transparency and accountability issues have rarely been out of the news, be it agreements at the G8 on tax evasion and open data, debates over online privacy or citizens protesting across the world for more responsive and efficient public services. Momentum was also sustained through the landmark UN High Level Panel report looking at what should replace the Millennium Development Goals in 2015. Their recommendations to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly emphasized the importance of open and accountable institutions. This week (29 July) the Open Government Partnership has written to the Secretary-General to reinforce the message that transparency, participation and accountability are essential for a post-2015 development framework that truly meets public aspirations for the world. The OGP Steering Committee write:

Since the Millennium Development Goals were crafted, the world has changed dramatically. So, too, has our understanding of what drives global development. To achieve sustainable growth, development and prosperity for all, we need to do more than allocate additional resources or adopt specific policies. We need strong institutions and governments that are more open and accountable to citizens.

This intervention from the nine countries and nine civil-society organisations on the OGP Steering Committee is significant as they are in the vanguard of the open government movement. OGP is a coalition built on the idea that innovation comes from everywhere. The UN High Level Panel similarly concludes that the next generation of development goals must be a universal agenda. The coalition transcends the economic blocs and interest groups that make up much of international politics, with the 60 participating countries regionally and economically diverse. Between them they have made over 300 concrete open government commitments in OGP’s short lifetime. A major summit in London at the end of October is set to build on that. The letter highlights the tangible improvements in people’s lives that ambitious open government reform can have:

The post-2015 development framework should include a carefully selected set of indicators and a robust monitoring framework that builds on the ‘data revolution’ called for by the High Level Panel report. This will require that all governments publish timely and comprehensive information on the public resources they invest in pursuing each of the goals, as well as the results they achieve. This information needs to be publicly available in its most disaggregated form, so that, for example, parents can see if funds reach schools and children are learning; patients can check if medicines are available at clinics and health outcomes improving; and people can know whether fair taxes are paid by and collected from extractive industries.

The next step in the process is for the Secretary-General to issue the annual MDG progress report, which is expected to include recommendations on the principles of the new development framework for discussion at September’s UN General Assembly. The OGP community stands ready to offer the political support necessary to ensure that transparency and accountability remains a central part of the post-2015 agenda. Download the full letter to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon here.

OGP Letter to UN Secretary-General

 

Filed Under: Challenges and Solutions Education Fiscal Openness Public Service Delivery Publication of Budget/Fiscal Information
Open Government Partnership