Open Government Partnership launches new subnational programme; Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo hosts historic international gathering of local leaders

“Bringing citizens closer to the local governments that serve them”

Leading voices in local government from major cities, counties, provinces, regions, and states across the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Africa, signed up to bold commitments and new initiatives designed to have real impact on the lives of their citizens. They range from:

• Tackling homelessness in Austin, Texas by better informing funding and policy-making;
• Improving the quality of public services working with community health projects in Bojonegoro, Indonesia;
• Improving 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 ... by Increasing the 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 of online data and receipts of the free education fund in Kigoma, Tanzania.

Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo said: “The local government  gathering in Paris is a historic achievement that demonstrates how indispensable city participation is in overcoming the challenges of our century,… We have proven this on the question of climate by organizing a Summit of 1000 mayors during the COP21. We will continue to prove this every day by constantly sharing best practices and common goals with cities from all over the world through programs such as the OGP Subnational Program.”

Government and civil society leaders from Austin, United States; Bojonegoro, Indonesia; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Elgeyo Marakwet, Kenya; Jalisco, Mexico; Kigoma, Tanzania; La Libertad, Peru; Madrid, Spain; Ontario, Canada; Paris, France; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Scotland, United Kingdom; Sekondi-Takoradi, Ghana; Seoul, South Korea and Tbilisi, Georgia met for the first time to launch their Action Plans and share experiences and good practices with citizens and civil society organizations as they embark on the implementation of their open government commitments.

Joe Powell, Deputy Director of Open Government Partnership, said: “Open government comes alive at the subnational level, where citizens receive services and we can tackle everyday problems facing societies. This subnational event is a sign of the growing desire of governments and civil society at the local level to build trust and open up. The subnational governments participating in this OGP program have taken a huge step towards more open and responsive government.”

The three day OGP Summit began December 7th with over a dozen heads of state, thousands of civil society leaders and other high-level open government reformers calling for greater openness in government to serve as a countervailing force against rising authoritarianism and shrinking civic space in many parts of the world. This is the first Summit to feature the OGP’s new Subnational Pilot Program, which launched in April.  

**ENDS**

For questions or to set up interviews please contact:

• Madaleine Weber, Communications Officer

madaleine.weber@opengovpartnership.org tel. +1 973 362 5210

Notes to the editor:

• December 9th, Press Conference hosted by Paris Mayor, Anne Hidalgo, at City Hall at 11:00 CET. More information and press accreditation is available here.  
• Daily Communications updates from the Summit
• Join the conversation on Twitter with #OGPLocalGov,  #OGP16 and #Act2open
• Watch the livestream of the event (in English, French and Spanish) starting at 2:00 PM CET on our website.

About OGP:

OGP was formally launched on September 20, 2011, on the sidelines of a UN General Assembly meeting, when eight heads of state, along with nine civil society leaders, endorsed the Open Government Declaration and published the first cohort of OGP National Action Plans.

Today OGP is composed of over 70 national governments, 15 subnational governments, seven multilateral organizations, and thousands of civil society organizations who together have made over 3,000 commitments towards open government reform to promote transparency, increase civic participation, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to make governments more open, effective, and accountable to citizens around the world.

OGP’s Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) holds governments accountable for their commitments by producing thorough, impartial reports that track progress on National Action Plans.

For more information about how Open Government Partnership works visit our website or read our brochure, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, subscribe to our Newsletter and Gazette, or watch our films 5 Years of OGP and The Story of OGP.