Open Gov Week 2022: Renewing Democracy, One Action at a Time

Open Gov Week celebrates the doers, thinkers, and creators determined to advance open government in their communities. This year, reformers in and outside of government hosted 300 events in over 60 countries – from assemblies, debates, hackathons to an open gov fair and art exhibitions.

Throughout the years, Open Gov Week has shown that the open government community is stronger when it works together to build stronger societies and more resilient democracies. This year was no exception. Here are few highlights from this year’s Open Gov Week:

Africa

South Africa

Beneficial ownership is  one of the leading strategies to fight corruption and is a growing area of interest across OGP, including in Africa. This OGW, colleagues in South Africa  in partnership with OGP, Open Ownership, Corruption Watch, and others, continued an important conversation on creating a register there. OGP’s Civil Society Co-Chair, Aidan Eyakuze also joined the discussion and spoke with regional media about its importance.

Morocco 

People from almost 100 local jurisdictions in Morocco participated in OGW events hosted throughout the country. From the province of Tiznit to the village of Bir Tam Tam in Sefrou, events focused primarily on ways to improve public service deliveryTo ensure that citizens of all groups are better supported by the government, OGP participating governments are working to improve the quality of and access to public services. Commitments in this are... through digital innovation and access to information. The government of Morocco will also co-host the OGP Africa and Middle East Regional Meeting later in 2022 to create a space for reformers to further open government solutions to improving public service delivery, such as healthcare, educationAccountability within the public education system is key to improving outcomes and attainment, and accountability is nearly impossible without transparent policies and opportunities for participation ... and infrastructure.

Credit PlaceholderPHOTO: Credit: Impact for Development

Americas

Dominican Republic

The government of the Dominican Republic invited an OGP delegation to join the launch of their latest OGP co-creation process, marking the beginning of their fifth OGP action plan. The country also announced a call for speakers for this year’s America Abierta, an in-person event co-hosted by OGP, ILDA, the OAS and Dominican government and civil society organizations.  The event will take place in Santo Domingo on September 26-30, 2022.

Credit PlaceholderPHOTO: Credit: Dirección General de Ética e Integridad, Dominican Republic.

ParlAmericas 

Parliaments are key partners in creating and implementing ambitious open government reforms. ParlAmericas, an independent network of 35 legislatures from the Americas, convened stakeholders from across the region to highlight the importance of legislative openness.OGP recently released new guidance for Parliaments to engage with OGP and the open government community further. Make sure to join the informational webinars starting on June 2nd to learn more!

Asia
Philippines 

To kick off Open Gov Week, the Philippines organized a series of in-person and virtual gatherings to highlight the successes such as the Citizen Participatory Audit (CPA), an initiative recognized by OGP at last year’s global Summit, the event featured a video message from OGP CEO Sanjay Pradhan and workshops to advance citizen engagement and participation. 

Republic of Korea

Former OGP co-chair, the Republic of Korea, organized meetings to capture perspectives from everyday citizens as well as national and international open government practitioners (including IRM and OGP representatives) on ways to strengthen the open government movement in Korea and renew democracies around the world.

Credit PlaceholderPHOTO: Credit: Minsitry of Interior and Safety of the Republic of Korea

Eastern Partnership

Armenia 

Reformers in Armenia used Open Gov Week to recognize the women behind key open government reforms and acknowledge the far-reaching benefits of diversity and genderOGP participating governments are bringing gender perspectives to popular policy areas, ensuring diversity in participatory processes, and specifically targeting gender gaps in policies to address gov... parity in leadership and decision-making.”  Young people in Yerevan also convened to create street art to raise awareness around freedom of expressionJournalists and activists are critical intermediaries connecting public officials with citizens and serving as government watchdogs, and their rights and safety need to be protected. Technical specifi... and access to information.

Ukraine

Despite the ongoing conflict in the country, reformers in Ukraine came together to identify open government tools and mechanisms needed right now. Ukraine has conducted four events. One of them was a strategy session (see photo below) where the OGP stakeholders discussed new challenges they are currently facing like access to information, humanitarian aid accounting and distribution, good practices in recovery efforts. In another event, Prozorro.Sale – recognized at the OGP Global Summit for its impact on anti-corruption – organized an event exploring opportunities to support businesses that decided to relocate in the country because of the war.

Europe

Italy 

OGP’s Open Gov Week was inspired by Italy’s Settimana dell’Amministrazione Aperta when it launched back in 2017. Today, Italy continues to play an important role during the week, hosting dozens of events around the country including hackathons, art exhibitions, and events to mainstream youth and gender perspectives in open government processes. As Co-Chairs of the OGP Steering Committee, Italy will convene the OGP Europe Regional Meeting later this year to continue this and many other initiatives at the local, national, and regional level. 

Read our latest Faces of Open Gov featuring Minister Renato Brunetta of Italy.

Lithuania

Like many OGP members, Lithuania took Open Gov Week as an opportunity to take stock of the progress they’ve made so far and how they can strengthen the tools and mechanisms at their disposal to open up governments, including public consultations. Reformers also gathered to discuss ways to enhance citizen engagement and implement the principles of participatory democracy in the country.  

Locals 

During Open Gov Week, OGP welcomed 30 new local governments to the Partnership. They join 76 other locals who are working with their civil society counterparts to create more open, inclusive, participatory and accountable governments. Some new members like Chihuahua and the Nuevo Leon consortium in Mexico organized events to celebrate this milestone and kick-start their own co-creation processes. OGP Local members like Bogota, Colombia; Catalunya, Spain; Kaduna, Nigeria; and others organized a number of events to push the open government agenda forward.

Credit PlaceholderPHOTO: Credit: Departament d'Exteriors i Govern Obert Catalunya

In addition to events on and offline, OGP also used Open Gov Week to collect and share stories about how open government – even in challenging times – is bringing about change. Through “Your Story. Short,” we’ve been able to capture many new stories of reformers working to  build a better version of democracy – one that puts citizens at the heart of policy.  To further develop these stories, we will be hosting a series of storytelling workshops in early June. All are invited to join in.