OGP Calls for Applications for Inspirational Reforms Awards

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Sanjay-Pradhan
CEO of Open Government Partnership

The Open Government Partnership (OGP), a multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from national and sub-national governments to promote open government, empower citizens, fight corruption, is calling on people from all OGP member countries and locals to apply for its “Inspirational Reforms” Awards, which seeks to recognize and reward reformers at the forefront of advancing open government

The OGP encourages open government reformers worldwide to meet the challenges of its new age as the partnership enters its first year of implementing a new strategy. The OGP community is made up of thousands of relentless, inspiring and deeply committed reformers striving to make a difference. OGP member countries are embracing sweeping anti-corruption measures, such as beneficial ownership transparency and open contracting. Innovative methods of public participation have moved from the fringes of policy-making around the world, even being embraced by many sceptics.

One country and one local winner will be recognized by a Summit Advisory Board for each of the four OGP regions – Europe, Africa, Americas and the Asia-Pacific. In addition, there would also be space for ‘honourable mentions’. Winners will be given a travel scholarship to participate in the Global Summit during the first week of September.

Applicants are encouraged to make submissions from any of the seven areas of the new OGP strategy listed below:

  • Civic space: Protecting and expanding civic space policies.
  • Inclusive participation in policymaking, specifically by working with gender groups, marginalized communities and youth.
  • Anti-corruption: Policies that tackle grand corruption and kleptocracy—illicit financial flows and money laundering—and on public integrity.
  • Digital technologies: Policies that target democratization and governance of digital tools, measures and tools to promote democracy, and data and digital transformation across other sectors of government.
  • Climate change: Strengthening the transparency and accountability of domestic systems for managing climate finance, opening up climate-relevant data and information, and encouraging uptake of innovations to deepen participation in climate-related policies.
  • Justice: Legal empowerment and access to justice, including expanding mechanisms for access to justice for communities and opening up justice institutions as well as leveraging the justice sector to strengthen other open government measures.
  • Engaging different branches and levels of government and embedding open government principles in the parliament, judiciary, national-local integration, oversight institutions

Submissions can be either of the following: Completed reforms which have shown strong early results; new reforms that are innovative and have the potential to be scaled up; reforms in an OGP action plan and reforms outside the OGP action plan.

The government point of contact (PoC) from each OGP country and local can enter a submission. They will be required to answer who, from outside the government was consulted in the submission process.

Each OGP member – national or local – is allowed a maximum of one submission.

For more information about the awards, please visit http://bit.ly/2023-ogp-awards, you can submit your entries at https://11zu970wesp.typeform.com/to/s6XQR00D.

Submission of applications for the Awards, which will be launched during the OGP Global Summit in Tallinn, Estonia, closes on Saturday, May 13, 2023.