Israel Design Report 2017-2019 – For Public Comment

In 2019, the Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM)The Independent Reporting Mechanism (IRM) is OGP’s accountability arm and the main means of tracking progress in participating countries. The IRM provides independent, evidence-based, and objective ... published the Design Report for Israel’s third action planAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... (2017-2019). The report covers the development and design of its commitments.

The IRM researchers Roy Peled and Guy Dayan’s findings are summarized below:

“Israel’s third action plan continues to focus on disclosing government-held information, strengthening transparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More legislationCreating and passing legislation is one of the most effective ways of ensuring open government reforms have long-lasting effects on government practices. Technical specifications: Act of creating or r..., and using technology to improve access to government services. The consultation process to develop the action plan was rushed and offered few opportunities for stakeholders the opportunity to influence the contents of the plan. Moving forward, Israel could improve the consultation process of future action plans by holding more in-person meetings and allowing stakeholders to shape the thematic focus. Future action plans could also be improved by making sure that commitments are directly relevant to OGP values broadly and continue improving the Freedom of Information law specifically.”

And in Hebrew:

“תכנית הפעולה השלישית של ישראל ממשיכה להתמקד בגילוי מידע המוחזק בידי הממשלה, חיזוק חקיקה לשקיפות, ושימוש בטכנולוגיה לשיפור הגישה לשירותי הממשלה. תהליך התייעצות זה לפיתוח תכנית פעולה הואץ והציע רק מעט הזדמנויות לבעלי העניין להשפיע על תכני התכנית. כדי להתקדם, ישראל יכולה לשפר את תהליך ההתייעצות בתכניות פעולה עתידיות על ידי קיום יותר פגישות אישיות ומתן אפשרות לבעלי העניין לעצב את הדגש התמטי. תכניות פעולה עתידיות יכולות גם להשתפר על ידי כך שיוודאו שההתחייבויות רלוונטיות ישירות לערכי OGP באופן כללי ולהמשיך ולשפר את חוק חופש המידע באופן ספציפי.”

The version of the report for public comment is available in English and in Hebrew below.  The two-week public comment period closed 16 October 2019.