New Zealand Prime Minister John Keyes Sept. 19 said his country will join the Open Government Partnership later this year, overcoming previous reluctance.

The announcement came after Keyes met in London with UK Prime Minister David Cameron. The UK now is an OGP co-chair and will be hosting the OGP meeting in London in late October.

“At the request of the UK, New Zealand will formally express its intention to join the Open Government Partnership (OGP) later this year,” according to a New Zealand press release that summed up a wide-ranging meeting.

Internal government documents release last year indicated that New Zeland officials considered OGP membership a resource drain and a “low priority.” (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.)

In agreeing to be the OGP’s 61^st member, Keys said in the statement: “The OGP’s goals are consistent with New Zealand values and with our goals for international economic and social development, and I was pleased the UK invited us to join.”

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Tags: open government partnership

Filed under: What's New