ESCWA and OECD’s support for open government reforms in Arab countries

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Arab Countries ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Government Reforms

Breaking through barriers: the impact of organizational culture on open government reform

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 335-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erna H.J.M. Ruijer ◽  
Richard F. Huff
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Culture ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Government Reform ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Practice Gap ◽  
Government Reforms ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of organizational culture on open government reforms by developing a theoretical framework bridging the theory and practice gap. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory qualitative study consisting of a document analysis and a case study was conducted. Findings An open organizational culture is a precursor to effective open government. A network strategy as a facilitator for developing an open culture was used in one US federal agency, breaking across boundaries within the organization, creating greater symmetrical horizontal and vertical openness. Originality/value Much of the focus in both theory and practice has been on the use of technology as a vehicle to increase government openness. This study argues that a movement toward openness is beyond the technical. Organizational culture is a key to openness and may need to be changed. A networks strategy may be one way to facilitate a transformation to a more open culture.

scholarly journals Which Countries Have More Open Governments? Assessing Structural Determinants of Openness

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (8) ◽  
pp. 944-956 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabina Schnell ◽  
Suyeon Jo
Keyword(s):  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Structural Determinants ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Citizen Education ◽  
Disclosure Laws ◽  
Executive Agencies ◽  
Government Reforms

An increasing number of countries are adopting open government reforms, driven, in part, by the Open Government Partnership (OGP), a global effort dedicated to advancing such initiatives. Yet, there is still wide variation in openness across countries. We investigate the political, administrative, and civic factors that explain this variation, using countries’ fulfillment of OGP eligibility criteria as a proxy for minimum standards of openness. We find that countries with strong constraints on the executive and high levels of citizen education have governments that are more open. A dense network of civil society organizations is associated with more budget transparency and higher civil liberties, but not with access to information or asset disclosure laws. The results suggest that if the value of openness is to be translated in practice, it is not enough to have capable bureaucracies—countries also need informed citizens and strong oversight of executive agencies.

scholarly journals Beyond Ambiguity: A Practical Framework for Developing and Implementing Open Government Reforms

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merlin Chatwin ◽  
Godwin Arku
Keyword(s):  
Local Governments ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Specific Content ◽  
Extensive Literature Search ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
Government Reforms ◽  
Available Information ◽  
Systems Framework

The broad idea of ‘Open Government’ is widely accepted as a facilitator for rebuilding trust and validation in governments around the world. The Open Government Partnership is a significant driver of this movement with over 75 member nations, 15 subnational government participants and many others local governments implementing reforms within their national frameworks. The central tenets of transparency, accountability, participation, and collaboration are well understood within scholarly works and practitioner publications. However, open government is yet to be attributed with a universally acknowledged definition. This leads to questions of adaptability and salience of the concept of open government across diverse contexts. This paper addresses these questions by utilizing a human systems framework called the Dialogue Boxes. To develop an understanding of how open government is currently positioned within scholarly works and practitioner publications, an extensive literature search was conducted. The search utilized major search engines, often-cited references, direct journal searches and colleague provided references. Using existing definitions and descriptions, this paper populates the framework with available information and allow for context specific content to be populated by future users. Ultimately, the aim of the paper is to support the development of open government action plans that maximize the direct positive impact on people’s lives.

scholarly journals What’s in a name? A comparison of ‘open government’ definitions across seven Open Government Partnership members

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 248-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Clarke ◽  
Mary Francoli
Keyword(s):  
Open Data ◽  
The United States ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Accountability Measures ◽  
Country Comparison ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Government Reforms

No longer restricted to access to information laws and accountability measures, “open government” is now associated with a broad range of goals and functions, including public participation, open data, the improvement of public services and government efficiency. The 59 country strong Open Government Partnership (OGP) suggests that consensus on the value of open government is emerging amongst public officials. Similarly, academics have shown a renewed interest in open government as they discuss, debate and critique the meaning and role of open government reforms today. Yet, despite the diverse aims and tools characterizing contemporary open government, public officials and academics typically approach the subject as a cohesive unit of analysis, making sweeping—and generally non-empirical—claims about its implications, without accounting for the homegrown flavours that may characterize open government in practice. Simply put, the practice and study of contemporary open government suffers a lack of definitional clarity: what exactly is open government today, and how does it vary across governments? In response to these questions, this paper analyses the content of open government policy documents in seven OGP member states (Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, Netherlands, Kenya, United Kingdom, and the United States), providing the first systematic, empirically-grounded multi-country comparison of contemporary open government. The paper suggests where the term departs from and retains its original meaning, and how its definition varies across different governments

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