The Open Government Partnership is an initiative launched in 2011 as an international platform for domestic reformers dedicated to the process of opening up the work of the government, its responsibility and responsiveness to citizens. From the eight countries it counted at the time, the Partnership has expanded to 75 countries and 194 local governments, representing more than two billion people and thousands of civil society organizations.
On September 24, 2014, Bosnia and Herzegovina officially joined this multilateral global initiative.
The Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a global multilateral initiative for the transparency and openness of the work of public authorities, and its participants are countries that, by becoming members of the Partnership, commit themselves to concrete measures and actions in the areas of transparency, strengthening the participation of citizens in authorities, the fight against corruption and the introduction of new technologies that make public administration as efficient as possible.
At the core of the OGP initiative are the values from the Declaration on Open Government. By agreeing to join the OGP, member states express:
- Awareness of the need for open government – awareness that citizens want more open government, participation in public life and government that will be transparent, responsible, efficient and sensitive to the needs of citizens.
- Individual approach to membership in the Initiative – each country chooses its own approach to participation in the Partnership, which is in accordance with the country’s priorities, circumstances and citizens’ wishes.
- Responsible fulfillment of obligations – accepting the responsibility of assuming obligations in promoting transparency, fighting corruption, empowering citizens and using new technologies in order to achieve more efficient and responsible government.
- Openness in cooperation with citizens and promotion of transparency – representation of the principle of openness in the joint efforts of authorities and citizens to ensure progress, innovation and community safety, and acceptance of the principles of transparency and open government, with the aim of achieving a higher level of well-being and human dignity.
The principles of the Partnership for Open Government and the implementation of measures within this initiative are directly related to the implementation of public administration reform, which is one of the EU’s priority requirements and key pillars in the enlargement process together with the rule of law and economic management. As a member of the Initiative, BiH supports its principles, which are in line with the general principles and reform of public administration, which is focused on creating an efficient, transparent, responsible, modern public administration, which will base its work on the best practices and principles of the European administrative space and truly work in favor of citizens, by providing fast and reliable services.
Bosnia and Herzegovina implemented the first Action plan in the period 2019-2021, and the implementation of the second Action plan for the period 2022-2024 is underway. The second Action plan of Bosnia and Herzegovina contains three promising commitments for the development of open data portals, the publication of data on public procurement and the increase of transparency of government funding of the media and civil society. However, the political crisis had a negative impact on the adoption of the Action plan. The constant engagement of the multi-participant forum despite such crises would encourage implementation and ensure oversight in cooperation with civil society. You can see more here https://www.opengovpartnership.org/members/bosnia-and-herzegovina/.
Action plans were drawn up in cooperation with civil society in Bosnia and Herzegovina, within the framework of the Advisory Council for the Implementation of the OGP. Support for the implementation of OGP in BiH is provided by the Ministry of Justice of BiH and the Public Administration Reform Coordinator’s Office. More about the activities of this body is on the website of the Ministry of Justice of BiH http://www.mpr.gov.ba/reload/default.aspx?id=10936&langTag=en-US
