Developing a Model for Open Government in the EU

This report considers how the EU, as a set of institutions and in the context of the democratic infrastructure of Europe, can continue the process of reforming and becoming more open in its governance arrangements. We look briefly at what open government is and explain the Open Government PartnershipThe Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a multi-stakeholder initiative focused on improving government transparency, ensuring opportunities for citizen participation in public matters, and strengthen... More (OGP), which has become a primary vehicle for progressing open government. We conduct primary research into the experiences of three diverse European countries – Estonia, Romania and the United Kingdom – in engaging with the OGP, and explore the feasibility and desirability of the EU joining this initiative. Finally, we provide recommendations and construct a roadmap for a more open EU government, building upon the lessons learned through this research. Some of the framework and required relationships are already in place around the continent through the work of the OGP, but the work also requires a change of culture and attitudes, a network for democracy and mechanisms for open government that reaches far beyond Brussels.

Developing a Model for Open Government in the EU