Posts Tagged ‘open government partnership’
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9 August 2013
Tackling Thorny Issues of Open Government at the OGP London Summit
This post was originally published Aug. 9 on the Open Government Partnership UK website, created by nongovernmental organizations and hosted by Open Rights Group, The Open Government Partnership summit in London is gaining momentum, as evidenced by the growing engagement from civil society organisations. The OGP is reaching an important milestone, with the closure of […]
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2 August 2013
OGP, IFIs Back Openness as Important Development Goal
The Open Government Partnership Steering Committee has written to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urging that the creation of open and accountable public institutions be made part of the next round of international development goals, according to a blog post by Joe Powell, OGP Support Unit Deputy Director. A similar emphasis is contained in a […]
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29 July 2013
OGP Media Council Formed; SC Seeks Ambitious Goals
An Open Government Partnership “Media Council” is exploring how the OGP can connect better with the media, according to the minutes of a recent OGP Steering Committee meeting and a FreedomInfo.org interview with the Council chairman. The Media Council, which was formed with no fanfare, was one of many topics on the agenda at the July […]
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25 July 2013
First Expert Assessments Due Out in September From OGP
The first assessments by independent examiners of the national action plans by the founding eight members of the Open Government Partnership are on track for announcement in mid-September. These will be the first evaluations to emerge from the OGP Independent Review Mechanism (IRM). The IRM is a multi-step, multi-deadline evolving process. The impending issuance of […]
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8 July 2013
OGP May Ratchet Up Goals for Second Action Plans
By Toby McIntosh Members of the Open Government Partnership should demonstrate “ambition” in their second national action plans, an OGP subcommittee has recommended. This proposal and many other topics are to be considered July 11-12 in London by the OGP Steering Committee. Although only the founding eight OGP countries are embarked on the preparation of follow-up action […]
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8 July 2013
Malawi to Join OGP; Total Membership Reaches 60
The Government of Malawi on July 4 indicated its desire to join the Open Government Partnership. The letter of intent starts the membership process. “Malawi will officially join OGP when it presents a National Action Plan and endorses the open government declaration,” according to the OGP announcement. Malawi scores 12 on the 16-point OGP eligibility […]
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22 May 2013
Australia to Join OGP; Membership Up to 59
Australia May 22 announced its intention to join the Open Government Partnership, bringing membership to 59. In the recent days, the total dropped to 57 with Russia’s resignation (See previous FreedomInfo.org report) and then went up to 58 with Ireland’s decision to join (See previous FreedomInfo.org report). Australia’s decision was announced by Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, […]
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20 May 2013
Ireland Plans to Join Open Government Partnership
Ireland May 20 announced its intention to join the Open Government Partnership. Irish membership will bring the OGP family back to 58, following the recent decision by Russia to drop out. (See related FreedomInfo.org report.) The government’s statement quotes Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin as saying, “OGP participation will provide further momentum to […]
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17 May 2013
Russia Leaving OGP; Provides No Explanation
Russia has withdrawn from membership in the Open Government Partnership. An official communication that it would drop out was received May 17, although it had signaled its intention several months ago and did not attend ther ministerial meeting in London last month, according to OGP-connected sources. Russia’s letter of intent to join is dated April […]
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16 May 2013
OGP Seeks Researchers on 39 Country Action Plans
The Open Government Partnership’s “Independent Reporting Mechanism” (IRM) is looking for researchers in 39 countries to carry out evaluations of national action plans. The IRM is now accepting applications for researchers in the following countries: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, […]
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13 May 2013
OGP Decides to Extend Cycle for Action Plans, Reviews
The Open Government Partnership has agreed to provide more time for member countries to write new action plans and assess their progress, and to have their performances reviewed by independent parties. OGP leaders meeting in London April 22-24 decided it would be better to institute a two-year cycle for these fundemental activities rather than the […]
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13 May 2013
OGP Sets 2014 Elections for New Government Leaders
The Open Government Partnership has come up with another plan for picking new government representatives to its Steering Committee, now looking to hold elections for seven positions in October of 2014. The OGP also has decided to increase the size of the Steering Committee from 18 to 20 in 2014, according to the minutes of […]
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13 May 2013
OGP to Examine Ways to Encourage Stretch Goals
The desire to see countries “stretch” to more ambitious heights has emerged as a potential goal within the Open Government Partnership, according to the minutes of the April 22-24 meeting in London. The topic came up as OGP leaders discussed a draft strategy update. Deliberations are expected to continue at the next Steering Committee meeting in Julyafter a […]
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13 May 2013
OGP Asks Governments to Contribute $25,000 Each
Seeking to address financial concerns, the leaders of the Open Government Partnership have decided to ask all 58 members to chip in at least $25,000. The slow flow of funding from governments was discussed at the OGP meetings in London April 22-24, according to the recently released minutes. The OGP receives substantial foundation support, but […]
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3 May 2013
Hungary Restricts FOI Law; OGP Membership Questioned
The Hungarian Parliament has adopted restrictive amendments to its freedom of information law that are being criticized by pro-transparency activists. The main change would allow the government to reject “excessive” requests for information, a standard critics called too vague. In addition, the changes appear to make the FOI law not applicable when disclosure policies are included […]
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19 April 2013
OGP Delays Rotation Plan; Faces Major Budget Shortfall
The Open Government Partnership is likely to delay plans to elect new government members to the Steering Committee and is facing a “substantial” budget gap, according to newly posted documents. With no government members willing to step down, an OGP subcommittee has recommended that all nine government Steering Committee members stay on for another year, […]
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12 April 2013
OGP Steering Committee Sets Agenda for 3-Day Meeting
The upcoming meeting of the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee in London will address many critical issues for the OGP’s future. Strategic direction, finances, Steering Committee membership and the independent review mechanism are some of the items on the agenda. Also, initial national action plans will be presented by a number of relatively recent members. […]
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11 April 2013
New OGP SC Members From Mexico, Moldova, Indonesia
The Open Government Partnership has announced three new civil society members on the OGP Steering Committee: Alejandro González of Mexico, Veronica Cretu of Moldova and Maryati Abdullah of Indonesia. The announcement described them this way: Alejandro González (GESOC, Mexico).Young and energetic; well connected to and involved in some of the important Latin American networks; worked […]
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11 April 2013
FOI Notes: Grant Competition, Jobs, Commentary, More
Grant Competition: The 40 finalists are announced in the Knight Foundation competition for projects to accelerate media innovation with “breakthrough ideas in news and information.” The competition now enters a further evaluation phase, where public input is welcome, with winners to be announced June 23. The finalists include: – ¿InfAction! is intended as a web/mobile […]
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5 April 2013
First OGP Self-Assessments Posted; Deadline Extended
The first country self-assessment reports on progress toward fulfilling their Open Government Partnership commitments are surfacing, with more expected in the coming weeks. Posted on the OGP website now are reports from two countries: the Philippines and the United States. The United Kingdom has released its draft report, but posting of a final report will […]