Posts Tagged ‘open government partnership’
-
16 December 2011
OGP Countries Begin Consultations on Action Plans
Various Open Government Partnership countries have starting holding public consultation on their national action plans, according to reports culled from the media, tweets, and government announcements. News on this front includes: – Latvia starting a working group, – Tanzania posting a draft plan, and – Canada holding a Twitter consultation. The OGP is not maintaining […]
-
12 December 2011
CSOs on OGP Board Caution South Africa on Secrecy Bill
The civil society members of the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee Dec. 12 issued a statement critical of South Africa for its current efforts to pass a bill designed to protect government information that has been widely criticized as a “secrecy bill.” A broad South African civil society coalition, the Right2Know Coalition, had urged the […]
-
8 December 2011
OGP Meeting Winds Up; Consultation Plans Sought
The two-day Open Government Partnership meeting in Brazil concluded Dec. 8 with a request from the Brazilian co-chairman for new OGP members to submit plans for civil society consultation by late January. The request came from Minister of State Jorge Hage and was reported in Twitter feeds from persons attending the meeting. Brazil co-chairs the […]
-
7 December 2011
Greece Joins OGP; Tweets Source of Info on Meeting
By Toby McIntosh The Open Government Partnership began a two-day “peer exchange working level meeting” Dec. 7 as Greece’s commitment to join brought OGP membership to 50. Most of the sessions were nonpublic, but some tidbits emerged via Twitter postings throughout the day. Among the newsier items: – Kenya promised to have a draft plan […]
-
2 December 2011
OGP to Discuss South Africa Secrecy Law, Other Topics
What to do about member countries that backslide on transparency will be discussed Dec. 6 by the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee, with the backdrop being South Africa’s plan to adopt what critics call a “secrecy bill.” At least one commentator, with strong links to the OGP, has called on the nine representatives of civil […]
-
28 November 2011
Three Countries Join OGP; Disclosure Policy Criticized
Demark, Armenia and Paraguay have joined the Open Government Partnership, bringing OGP membership to 49. Their commitments come as the OGP prepares for a meeting in Brazil Dec. 7-8 and as comments arrive on the organization’s proposed disclosure policy. In other OGP-related developments: – Tanzania’s efforts to prepare its action plan were faulted in several […]
-
11 November 2011
OGP Members to Present Status Reports in Brazil
Countries that will participate in the upcoming Open Government Partnership meeting in Brazil have been asked to make short presentations on their efforts to date to develop national action plans, according to the OGP website. In other recent OGP news: – The OGP is advertising to hire a person who for its support unit. – […]
-
25 October 2011
OGP Posts Draft Disclosure Policy, Seeks Comments
The Open Government Partnership Steering Committee Oct. 25 proposed a disclosure policy, inviting public comment by Nov. 25. The draft policy begins with a pledge. “The Open Government Partnership is committed to modeling best practices and embodying the principles of transparency, accountability and citizen engagement that it promotes. OGP is committed to being accountable to […]
-
21 October 2011
OGP Continues Organizing; Disclosure Policy on Horizon
The Open Government Partnership will release its own proposed disclosure policy Oct. 25 as the organizers continue to develop the international effort. The OGP steering committee also is preparing a governance policy that will, among things, deal with how to incorporate the new country members into the organization. The OGP steering committee is an unusual […]
-
30 September 2011
Some Ineligible OGP Countries Ask How to Join
Countries who do not currently qualify for membership in the Open Government Partnership have been asking how they could get in the door. Botswana, Mauritius and Tunisia are among a half dozen ineligible countries that have expressed an interest, according to Caroline Maudlin, Special Assistant to the U.S. Under Secretary of State for Democracy and […]
-
27 September 2011
Let a Thousand Flowers of Information Bloom
By Rakesh Rajini Rajani is head of Twaweza Tanzania. This article is an edited version of a presentation he made on behalf of civil society at the Sept. 20 launch of the Open Government Partnership in New York on Sept. 20. Perhaps the most important reason we need open government, in a world marked by […]
-
22 September 2011
Norway Includes Gender Equality in OGP Plan
Unusual among the action plans by the eight founding member governments of the Open Government Partnership, Norway included gender equality as one component. Norway is a founding member of the OGP, officially kicked off in New York City Sept. 20. (See FreedomInfo.org overview.) The 46 countries joining the effort agree to write action plans containing […]
-
22 September 2011
Mexico’s OGP Plan Pledges New Proactive Disclosures
The Mexican commitments made in its Open Government Partnership action plan promise a range of information disclosures about government services, release of databases and creation of online windows for commercial and corporate transactions, among other things. Mexico is one of the founding members of the partnership, officially kicked off in New York City Sept. 20. […]
-
22 September 2011
UK OGP Plan Emphasizes Foreign Aid Transparency
The United Kingdom’s plan submitted as part of the Open Government Partnership initiative drew attention for focusing on foreign aid transparency and also contains a number of other proposed activities for the home front, including on open data. In Associated Press report leading up the May 20 meeting in New York, quoted a U.K. minister […]
-
22 September 2011
Indonesian Action Plan Issued as Part of OGP Process
The Indonesian “action plan” announced Sept. 20 as part of the Open Government Partnership aims to be execution-oriented, people-oriented and have a snowball effect, according to the words of the preamble. Indonesia is one of the founding members of the partnership, officially kicked off in New York City Sept. 20. (See FreedomInfo.org overview.) The 46 […]
-
20 September 2011
Open Government Effort Officially Begun at NYC Event
World leaders inaugurated the 46-nation Open Government Partnership Sept. 20 in New York City with speeches about the value of open government. Endorsing a declaration on open government, the partner countries agreed to issue national action plans in which they make commitments to advance open government on many fronts. The eight founding members issued their […]
-
20 September 2011
Brazil Submits Action Plan for Open Government Partnership
The Brazilian government Sept. 20 issued its action plan for improving open government. The announcement came in connection with the kick-off of the Open Government Partnership, a multinational effort that Brazil co-chair with the Unites States. The eight core members of the OGP released their plans at an event in New York City. (See related […]
-
20 September 2011
U.S. Issues 26-Point Plan of Transparency Commitments
The United States Sept. 20 made 26 specific commitments as part of its national action plan for participation in the Open Government Partnership. Some part of the plan have announced previously, but a few items are new. “Probably the biggest announcement,” according to an administration official, is a commitment to implement the Extractive Industries Transparency […]
-
20 September 2011
Philippines OGP Commitment on FOI Legislation General
The Open Government Partnership commitment by the Philippines government on pending freedom of legislation is general and President Benigno Aquino, who addressed an OGP event in New York Sept. 20, but did not mention the pending bill. The Phlippines national action plan statement on the OGP website, posted Sept. 20, states in part: Promote Access to Government Information. […]
-
20 September 2011
Action Plans Released for Eight Core OGP Countries
The national action plans of the eight founding Open Government Partnership countries are now available online. The plans indicate commitments made the United States and Brazil (co-chairs), South Africa, the United Kingdom, Norway, Mexico, Indonesia and the Philippines. (Click on the orange name of the country.) “We hope that many of those plans will become models […]