Elgeyo Marakwet Design Report 2018-2020

Overall, the IRM found significant improvements in the co-creation processCollaboration between government, civil society and other stakeholders (e.g., citizens, academics, private sector) is at the heart of the OGP process. Participating governments must ensure that a dive... of this 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.... Areas for improvement include designing commitments to increase ambitionAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, OGP commitments should “stretch government practice beyond its current baseline with respect to key areas of open government.” Ambition captures the po... and potential for transformative results. That said, the IRM also views current commitments on procurement and public health services as opportunities to leverage the OGP platform for 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 and accountability in the response and recovery efforts during the Coronavirus pandemic.

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) is a global partnership that brings together government reformers and civil society leaders to create action plans that make governments more inclusive, responsive, and accountable. 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 ... monitors all action plans to ensure governments follow through on commitments. Elgeyo Marakwet joined OGP in 2016. Since 2016, Elgeyo Marakwet has implemented one action plan. This report evaluates the design of Elgeyo Marakwet’s 2018−2020 second action plan.

General overview of the action plan

The action plan matches the open government context in Elgeyo Marakwet. Three commitments seek to increase transparency and accountability in public procurementTransparency in the procurement process can help combat corruption and waste that plagues a significant portion of public procurement budgets globally. Technical specifications: Commitments that aim t... More, healthcare service delivery, planning, and budgeting; the other two commitments strive to widen civic engagement and enhance access to empowerment opportunities for youthRecognizing that investing in youth means investing in a better future, OGP participating governments are creating meaningful opportunities for youth to participate in government processes. Technical ... More, women, and persons living with disabilities to play a role in governance.

The co-creation process for Elgeyo Marakwet was highly structured and well organized. The OGP trust fund was awarded to the Centre for Innovations in Open Governance (CIOG) to support the co-creation. The fund majorly contributed to wider engagement in Multistakeholder Forum membership, and broadened the consultation process beyond that of the first action plan. An online document repositoryAccess to relevant information is essential for enabling participation and ensuring accountability throughout the OGP process. An OGP repository is an online centralized website, webpage, platform or ... for the action plan and improvements in convening meetings are still needed.

The co-creation approach allowed inclusionOGP participating governments are working to create governments that truly serve all people. Commitments in this area may address persons with disabilities, women and girls, lesbian, gay, bisexual, tr... More of commitments from civil society organizations (CSOs). The final commitments match the policy areas prioritized by both government and civil society.

Table 2. Noteworthy commitments

Recommendations

The IRM recommendations aim to inform the development of the next action plan and guide implementation of the current action plan.

Table 3. Five KEY IRM Recommendations