Open Government


Open government is the simple but powerful idea that governments and institutions work better for citizens when they are transparent, engaging and accountable.

Open government as an approach means:

  • Everyone can access relevant, usable, and timely information about government processes and decisions that impact their lives.
  • Everyone has an equal opportunity to participate freely in shaping the public policies and decisions that impact their lives.
  • Everyone has the freedom and ability to seek effective redress when the rule of law is not upheld, their rights are not respected, or their needs are unmet, without risk or harm. Public officials are accountable for their decisions and actions.
  • Public resources are managed transparently, fairly, and equitably.
  • Governments collaborate with civil society, academia, private sector and others to find and implement innovative and sustainable solutions to societal challenges.
  • Transparency, accountability, participation, and inclusion are embedded in the culture and practice of governments at all levels.

For much of OGP’s first decade, the primary path to implementing OGP’s vision was through co-creation of reform commitments in national and local action plans. OGP’s approach focused on maintaining high-level political leadership and commitment, fostering peer exchange among reformers and supporting them with technical expertise and evidence, and ensuring that members were held accountable through the IRM. The OGP community has been able to achieve great success through this approach, but there is potential to achieve much more together.

The latest strategy builds on this track record and recognises that significant and enduring changes will need to come from a growing number of reformers—political leaders, civil society, social movements, business leaders, journalists, public servants—who innovate and embed open government in their daily work. This demands a shift of approach in which OGP as a community focuses on cultivating a much stronger movement of such reformers and leaders who drive change and take action, both through and beyond OGP, to support them in their efforts to put people at the heart of their governments.

The Open Government Partnership


In 2011, government leaders and civil society advocates came together to create a unique partnership—one that combines these powerful forces to promote transparent, participatory, inclusive and accountable governance.

The Open Government Partnership (OGP) includes 75 countries and 150 local governments – representing more than two billion people – and thousands of civil society organisations.