WHAT’S NEXT FOR OGP COMMITMENTS?
The fourth OGP Global Summit will take place in Paris, December 7th – 9th.
The OGP summit will involve 3000 representatives from 70 countries: Heads of State and governments, ministers, public servants, members of parliament, local authorities, civil society representatives, start-ups and digital innovators, civic techs, developers, researchers, journalists will gather in Paris to share their experiences and push forward the open government agenda in light of the global challenges.
In the lead up to the Paris Summit in early December and the release of a Paris Declaration, the (international) OGP Steering Committee and Support Unit, is encouraging governments and civil society organisations, including Australia, “to sign up to collective actions that will further the open government agenda in their countries and around the world.”
THE OGP “PARIS DECLARATION”.
The outcome statement of the global summit is provisionally titled: “Paris Declaration for Open Government Partnership: Collective actions for the renewal of our democracies”. The OGP Steering Committee and Support Unit, is encouraging governments and civil society organizations to sign up to collective actions that will further the open government agenda in their countries and around the world.
The objective of the Declaration is to show that governments and CSOs are joining forces to set up concrete ways of working together to push open government forward.
KEY POINTS ABOUT THE DECLARATION:
- The Declaration is a major opportunity for national and sub-national governments and civil society organisations participating in OGP to showcase and advance their work, and commit to support peers with practical tools and expertise to implement open government reforms
- Each member government can decide which of the 21 collective actions to which they wish to contribute. They do not need to sign on to all 21, or agree with all of the text. The expectation is every OGP government will join 1-3 collective actions.
- Civil society groups in member countries are asked to help advocate with the government(s) to sign up to the collective actions most relevant. Civil society is encouraged to add your own contribution.
- Collective actions are not in themselves new commitments that should be included in National Action Plans. The collective actions are intended to inspire extra ambition or new commitments for the next NAP or just capture very practical, output-orientated contributions CSOs or governments might make to an issue area in the form of support or learning.
- Contributions can be uploaded directly to http://paris-declaration.ogpsummit.org/
COMMITMENTS
The Paris Declaration will showcase the most innovative actions governments and civil society are taking in 21 different areas.
We will make the public contracting process open by default, by publishing contract and contracting information, according to open data standards, to help tackle corruption, increase competitiveness, and improve service delivery.
2. Ending abuse of anonymous companies
We will reduce the opacity around corporate ownership, limit fraud and minimize conflict of interest by collecting accurate, adequate, and timely basic and beneficial ownership information (including legal ownership information and trusts), and making it available and fully accessible to law enforcement and those who have a legitimate need for it, including those working to help prevent abuse.
3. Innovation and data driven approaches to expose and fight corruption
We will develop new collaborations and exchange innovative approaches to tackle corruption. The use of new technology and open data can strengthen the exposure of corrupt practices, help connect people and organizations – including national anti corruption and law enforcement agencies, international organizations, technology experts, lawyers, social innovators, data scientists etc. – and broadly accelerate the production and usability of data on corruption.
We will establish frameworks and transparency measures to regulate lobbying, building on the work of the International Standards for Lobbying Regulation, deepening on the various regulations such as public registries of lobbyists and registries of meetings with senior public officials, integrity measures such as codes of conduct, and disclosure of conflict of interests to ensure more trust in decision-making processes.
5. Transparency on political party finance
We commit to ensuring the collection and timely pre-election publication of detailed information on the finances, interests, and related information of political parties and electoral candidates in open data formats, with regular publication of updates. Collection and publication of information will be overseen by an independent body, with investigation and sanction powers. We will do this in line with international standards, including the UN Convention against Corruption and the Declaration on Political Finance Openness. We will share best practices and tools that enable the easy publication and distribution of this data, so that people can follow the money in politics and identify corruption risks.
We will implement our access to information laws to a high standard by training public officials, raising awareness, ensuring good record keeping and management, and improving rates of timely responses to requests. We will support the existence of dispute resolution mechanisms and oversight bodies and will measure and report regularly on compliance with the Access to information (ATI) law.
We also will expand proactive disclosure of information, particularly that needed for participation in and accountability of public decision making. We will work towards ensuring that all information is published according to internationally recognized open standards. As the right of access to information is a transformative right and necessary for sustainable development, we will make particular efforts to ensure that comprehensible and meaningful information reaches all sectors of society, including the most marginalized populations, such as women.
7. Transparency and participation in budgets and fiscal policies
We will improve public participation in the development and implementation of fiscal policy and budgeting, the dissemination of fiscal data in line with international good practices on budget transparency using open data formats, to popular dissemination of budget information through portals, citizens budgets or other means, and to fostering strong and independent supreme audit institutions. We will accelerate legislative reform on country-by-country reporting and tax avoidance, evasion and avoidance.
8. Transparency and open contracts in the natural resource sector
We will publish the contracts, licenses or leases (including associated geospatial information) which detail the agreements made between companies and the government on natural resources and land projects and the sales of commodities, and we will improve the transparency of the processes through which those agreements are made, in line with the open contracting principles. We will also publish information and assessments on the potential social and environmental impacts of these projects, and improving accountability and participation in their environmental management.
9. Engaging citizens in an open and inclusive law-making process
We will build more open and inclusive law-making processes to strengthen our democracies, by engaging citizens via e-petitions, improved procedures for online comments on draft policies and legislation, and spaces in parliament and government (such as “hacker lab” spaces) to allow better co-creation with members of the public.
We will create inclusive, robust, and transparent public participation processes that are accessible to a wide range of stakeholders, including marginalized and vulnerable groups, and assuring the equitable engagement of women, for the design of national and subnational climate and sustainable development-relevant strategies, plans, and policies. This will contribute to transparent, participatory, and accountable implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and in particular SDG target 16.7 aimed at ensuring “responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels”.
11. Tracking climate relevant policy implementation and results
We will develop, using a participatory process, nationally-relevant milestones and indicators to track, and make publicly accessible, the implementation and results of climate and sustainable development policies, such as those associated with nationally determined contributions, 2020 pledges, long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies, and green growth/sustainable development strategies relevant for the SDGs.
12. Greater transparency of information on climate and sustainable development in national budgets
We will ensure open tracking and reporting on climate and sustainable development finance through improved transparency on climate and sustainable development activities as well official support for high-emission activities in national budgets that are disclosed using agreed and common open data standards.
13. Disclosure of climate-related investment risks and corresponding mitigation measures
We will move toward appropriate mandatory disclosure open data standards of relevant information on climate and natural resources-related financial risks of investments, as well as investments that contribute to climate solutions, by national financial institutions and private sector investors, insurers, and banks. This can help align public and private financial flows with a zero-carbon and climate-resilient development trajectory, while also increasing companies’ and investors’ awareness and response to the effects of climate change and natural resource scarcity, related commodity price volatility, and other shocks.
14. Harnessing the Data Revolution for Sustainable Development and Climate Risk Resilience
Data are critical for open governments and open societies to achieve sustainable development, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to build resilience to the impacts of climate variability and change. We will collaborate to advance the legal, regulatory, or institutional mechanisms to enable the collection, management, and reporting of data to inform decision-making to advance sustainable development and build climate resilience. Where possible, we will disclose data in an open format, disaggregated for gender and vulnerable populations, using common standards for reporting and respecting privacy concerns.
15. Supporting Justice for All through a focus on measurement and data collection
We will accelerate implementation of Goal 16 through sharing best practices on data collection and measurement on access to justice that can strengthen the justice sector and lay the foundation for wider collaboration on the use of open government to support the rule of law and access to justice.
16. Policies and mechanisms to promote and strengthen engagement with civil society
In order to ensure that OGP’s underlying principles of civil society participation are protected and institutionalized, we will create with civil society national permanent dialogue and participation mechanisms that enhance transparency around implementation of public policies and government actions, increase opportunity for civil society to play a stronger role in their monitoring and advancement, and promote greater diversity and inclusion of participants. Ongoing partnership between government and civil society in the shaping and advancement of national reforms is at the core of OGP’s multi-stakeholder theory of change, and safeguards against backsliding and closing space. Through collaboration on the establishment of successful dialogue mechanisms and best practices, this collective action will also provide an established fora for civil society organizations to engage governments in ensuring supportive operating environments for civil society more broadly.
17. Opening and sharing civic technology tools for opening government
We will share and reuse software and online services used by governments and civil society around the world, including open data portals, public consultation platforms, tools for monitoring and co-creating the law, discussion forums, and online platforms to monitor the implementation of National Action Plans. These tools foster the dialogue between civil society and administration, to create more efficient public services and effective collaboration.
18. Increase the responsiveness and accountability of public services to citizens
We will improve the health, education and wellbeing of citizens by increasing the accountability and responsiveness of the public services that are delivered to them. We will share expertise and tools to implement and scale successful practices, such as citizens charters, social audits and participatory budgeting.
19. Collaborative data infrastructures for digital commons
Data has become a strategic infrastructure that is essential for social and economic development of a society (social inclusion, economic growth, service delivery). We will engage to produce and provide a core data infrastructure with the citizens enabling the society to benefit the most from it, while implementing the highest standards to protect the individuals’ rights.
20. Guiding principles for open data policies
Open data is a crucial part of more transparent, innovative, responsive and effective governments. Accessible, comparable and timely standardised information can support evidence-based policymaking, enhancing collaboration between citizens and governments worldwide. Therefore, we will adopt and effectively implement the principles of the Open Data Charter to support open government and deliver National Action Plans.
21. Creating an Open Source Software policy
Open source code contribute to fostering transparency and collaboration around digital commons. With data, code sources is at the heart of digital infrastructure that will provide high quality digital services. We will be transparent and accountable about the codes and algorithms we develop and use, and design and implement them in non-discriminatory manners.
Sources.
What is the Open Government Partnership ?
OGP16 – Paris Declaration