Inception Report – Action plan – Tétouan (Municipality), Morocco, 2022 – 2026
Overview
Name of Evaluator
Association ATIL
Member Name
Tétouan (Commune), Maroc
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... Title
Action plan – Tétouan (Municipality), Morocco, 2022 – 2026
Section 1.
Compliance with
co-creation requirements
1.1 Does a forum exist?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The governance bodies of the action plan 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... are composed of a forum and a steering committeeThe Steering Committee is OGP’s executive decision-making body. Its role is to develop, promote and safeguard OGP’s values, principles and interests; establish OGP’s core ideas, policies, and ru.... The forum is conformed by civil society organizations active in the fields of local governance, elected officials, members of the consultative body for equal opportunities and the genderOGP participating governments are bringing gender perspectives to popular policy areas, ensuring diversity in participatory processes, and specifically targeting gender gaps in policies to address gov... More approach (set up within the local council), and the university. The steering committee is composed of equal numbers of associations chosen at the outset on the basis of considerations relating to the type of activity, experience, and reputation in the field of local governance, gender, and social 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, as well as a communal component made up of elected officials and executives from the communal administration. Participation in the forum was open to all civil society actors wishing to participate in the process of developing the action plan. The forum is responsible for organizing the renewal of the steering committee through a call for expressions of interest addressed to civil society actors. This operation is planned for questions of continuity and coherence for the co-creation phase of the next action plan.
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.2 Is the forum multi-stakeholder?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The forum is open to all actors from civil society, the municipal administration, the university, the private sectorGovernments are working to open private sector practices as well — including through beneficial ownership transparency, open contracting, and regulating environmental standards. Technical specificat... More, and anyone who wishes to contribute to the thematic workshops for the co-creation of the action plan. A public notice was issued on this subject and published by the local media and on the website of the municipality, on social networks, and posted at the headquarters of the municipality. In addition, the steering committee sent out hundreds of invitations to the city’s associative actors via email.
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.3 Does the forum hold at least one meeting with civil society and non-governmental stakeholders during the co-creation of the action plan?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The forum’s work was organized in thematic workshops, four workshops were organized in October 2022. The themes chosen, in relation to the values of the OGP, were 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 access to information, gender and social inclusion, citizen participationAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, citizen participation occurs when “governments seek to mobilize citizens to engage in public debate, provide input, and make contributions that lead to m... More, and finally, innovation and quality of municipal services. These workshops were led by associations working in the areas discussed in the presence and with the participation of active associations, and executives concerned with the municipal administration, the university, and the local media.
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.4 Has the action plan been endorsed by the stakeholders of the forum or steering committee/group?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The commitments formulated on the basis of the proposals of the stakeholders who participated in the work of the civil society forum were submitted to the steering committee which met on November 14, 2022, to examine the content of the draft commitments and to validate the entire action plan.
It should be noted that at the beginning, the action plan was made up of 11 commitments, and following the observation of the OGP Local Support UnitThe OGP Support Unit is a small, permanent group of staff that work closely with the Steering Committee and the Independent Reporting Mechanism to advance the goals of the Open Government Partnership.... concerning the exceeding of the maximum number of commitments, the steering committee met on February 8, 2023, to reorganize the action plan into 5 commitments.
Provide evidence for your answer:
Section 2.
Recommended practices
in co-creation
2.1 Does the government maintain a Local OGP website or webpage on a government website where information on the OGP Local process (co-creation and implementation) is proactively published?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
For the co-creation phase of the action plan, the commune made a point of publishing information about the process through:
- The commune’s website (Arabic),
- A dedicated Facebook page,
- Articles published on the national OGP website.
Provide evidence for your answer:
Provide references here (e.g. interviews):
2.2 Did the government provide information to stakeholders in advance to facilitate informed and prepared participation in the co-creation process?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The choice of themes for the forum workshops is attributed to the steering committee, and the associations that are members of this committee are responsible for framing and facilitating these workshops through the preparation of notes and presentations.
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.3 Did the government ensure that any interested member of the public could make inputs into the action plan and observe or have access to decision-making documentation?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
A space for citizen participation was made available to stakeholders at the forum and steering committee level throughout the co-creation process. A public consultation was organized via the Internet concerning the thematic debates during the co-creation workshops of the action plan as well as a dedicated email address to receive suggestions and proposals from the public.
Provide references here (e.g. interviews):
2.4 Did the government proactively report back or provide written feedback to stakeholders on how their contributions were considered during the creation of the action plan?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
A closing report of the work of co-creation of the action plan was prepared and put online on the website of the municipality and on the website assigned for this purpose: https//ogptetouan.ma. This report lists and categorizes the proposals collected and specifies those that are retained and developed in the action plan in the form of commitments or subsequent activities as well as those that are already programmed in the municipal action plan (PAC 2023-2028).
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.5 Was there an iterative dialogue and shared ownership between government and non-governmental stakeholders during the decision making process, including setting the agenda?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The steering committee made up of representative members of civil society and the municipality (elected officials and administration) met on September 23 and 27, 2022, and agreed on the themes of the co-creation workshops, the program, and the facilitating associations. The steering committee, which met on November 14, 2022, examined the relevant draft commitments and adopted the draft action plan.
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.6 Would you consider the forum to be inclusive and diverse?
Moderately
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The issues of inclusiveness and diversity are taken into account in the steering committee which includes: Two militant associations for women’s rights, an association of people with disabilitiesA government is not open unless it is accessible to all, and governments are working to ensure people with disabilities are afforded equitable services and opportunities to participate. Technical spec..., an association of academics working in the fields of citizenship, heritage, and local development, an association active in environmental issues and sustainable development. The forum of civil society recorded the participation of various associations young people, women, pensioners, people with disabilities, academics, students, etc.
Provide evidence for your answer:
Section 3.
Initial evaluation
of commitments
1 CommitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action... :
Proactive publication of information related to communal management and services
1.1 Is the commitment verifiable?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The expected result of the implementation of this commitment is the availability to the public of primary information related to financial management, in particular, through proactive publication on the website and upon request to a clearly differentiated administrative structure “the citizen’s office”. The recommended performance indicator is the number of documents published (management documents, procedure guide, annual reports, etc.).
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.2 Does the commitment language/activities clearly justify relevanceAccording to the OGP Articles of Governance, OGP commitments should include a clear open government lens. Specifically, they should advance at least one of the OGP values: transparency, citizen partic... to OGP values?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The proactive publication of primary information on municipal management is essential for the transparency of the institution. The programmed activities offer accessibility to all sectors of the population with or without knowledge of the use of digital tools and applications.
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.3 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
a continuation of ongoing practice in line with existing 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..., policies or requirements.
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The Moroccan Law n°31.13 on the Right to Access to Information promulgated in 2018 and in particular Article 10 and following encourages administrations and local authorities to publish as much information as possible and to install adequate structures to store, update and make available to the public information of public nature.
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.4 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
will result in a change of the rules, practices or policies that govern a policy area, public sector and/or relationship between citizens and is binding or institutionalized across government or specific institution(s).
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The implementation of the Law on the Right of Access to Information is a considerable step forward in strengthening transparency and provides the tools and information necessary to establish a real practice of re-publishing accounts. On the other hand, the commitment introduces an exercise of co-creation of a participatory budget, it is an approach with a double objective, to realize the general public with the administrative process of the elaboration of a budget and to implement a project or a budgeted action that is conceived in a collective and concerted way.
Provide evidence for your answer:
1.5 Are there any recommended changes to the design of the commitment to help improve its implementation?
The commitment can be seen as a positive application of the Law on the Right of Access to Information (cited above) with regard to the proactive publication of information, it is dependent on the establishment of a digital and physical platform and ensure its operation through communicative interfaces to be developed by the municipality and its partners to raise awareness and facilitate access to these platforms for citizens.
2 Commitment :
Public monitoring of the implementation of the communal action plan (PAC)
2.1 Is the commitment verifiable?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The specific objective of this commitment is to set up a public monitoring system for the implementation of the action plans drawn up by the municipality using a participatory approach (Communal Action Plan (PAC), OGP-Tetouan action plan, open municipality). The expected results are the establishment of a platform allowing citizens to consult the CAP and the progress of its implementation, and a website allowing online monitoring of the action plan: Tetouan, open municipality 2023-2026. The recommended result indicator is the number of monitoring reports published and comments raised.
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.2 Does the commitment language/activities clearly justify relevance to OGP values?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The aim is to establish a practice that strengthens the transparency of communal action, and citizen participation through an open mechanism of collective monitoring, which leads to the anchoring of a relevant practice of accountability and reporting on the processes of participatory territorial planning and implementation of co-created and result-oriented action plans.
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.3 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
a new regulationGovernment reformers are developing regulations that enshrine values of transparency, participation, and accountability in government practices. Technical specifications: Act of creating or reforming ..., policy, practice or requirement.
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
Decree No. 2.16.301 establishing the procedure for the preparation of the communal action plan stipulates that it is the duty of the president of the communal council to submit to the council an annual monitoring report on the implementation of the action plan and the posting of a summary of the said report at the headquarters of the commune, without the requirement of a publication intended for the general public.
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.4 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
will result in a change of the rules, practices or policies that govern a policy area, public sector and/or relationship between citizens and is binding or institutionalized across government or specific institution(s).
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The planned activities will lead to a change in rules and practices, as the public accountabilityAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, public accountability occurs when ”rules, regulations, and mechanisms in place call upon government actors to justify their actions, act upon criticisms ... More aspects are not well marked by the current law on communes.
Provide evidence for your answer:
2.5 Are there any recommended changes to the design of the commitment to help improve its implementation?
This monitoring mechanism, an operational one, can be used to provide proposals or suggestions for the removal of constraints or the improvement of expected results once the action plans are implemented, which can lead to a beneficial process of co-implementation.
3 Commitment :
Digitization for quality of local services
3.1 Is the commitment verifiable?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The expected results of the implementation of the programmed activities are well defined, it is to improve the quality of services provided to citizens through digital tools and through communication media affecting people with disabilities or exclusion.
Provide evidence for your answer:
3.2 Does the commitment language/activities clearly justify relevance to OGP values?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
Through inclusive means of communication, this commitment aims to improve access to basic services through a combination of recommended digital tools and communication media targeting vulnerable segments of the population.
Provide evidence for your answer:
3.3 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
a new regulation, policy, practice or requirement.
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
This is a new requirement that arose from the recommendations of the participants in the action plan co-creation workshops (people with disabilities and residents of outlying areas).
Provide evidence for your answer:
3.4 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
is a positive change to a process, practice or policy but will not generate a binding or institutionalized change across government or specific institution(s).
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The expected results of implementing the components of this commitment are that the requirements for accessibility to community services and the information needed to access them are fully met.
Provide evidence for your answer:
3.5 Are there any recommended changes to the design of the commitment to help improve its implementation?
The commitment seems to be balanced, it aims at territorial equity in terms of coverage by communal services through digitalized tools and a physical structure (a one-stop shop) for people who do not have the necessary knowledge to use digital tools.
4 Commitment :
Inclusion through culture and sport
4.1 Is the commitment verifiable?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The objective of the commitment starts from a well-known fact, the territorial revelations in terms of access to the heritage, to the culture, or to the sports activity of proximity are notable, the commitment is conceived to palliate relatively these dismissals, and the results are verified by indicators as the number of announced events or the number of beneficiary districts.
Provide evidence for your answer:
4.2 Does the commitment language/activities clearly justify relevance to OGP values?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The cultural or sports animation of the peripheral areas of the city through an associative mobilization aims at the inclusion and participation of young people from the adjacent neighborhoods and the old medina, classified as a world heritage site by UNESCO, which are overpopulated areas and not sufficiently equipped with cultural and sports infrastructures and not very animated in cultural or sports activities.
Provide evidence for your answer:
4.3 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
a new regulation, policy, practice or requirement.
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
Through this commitment, the municipality and its civil society partners plan to reduce a deficit in organized cultural and sports activities in the neighborhoods and promote culture and sports in local municipal facilities, and strengthen urban accessibility in heritage areas.
Provide evidence for your answer:
4.4 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
is a positive change to a process, practice or policy but will not generate a binding or institutionalized change across government or specific institution(s).
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
It is a voluntary initiative that aspires to a “democratization” of culture and sport based on the participation and contribution of civil society organizations active in the themes related to cultural animation and sports activity of proximity.
Provide evidence for your answer:
4.5 Are there any recommended changes to the design of the commitment to help improve its implementation?
The commitment is conceived as a pilot project that can be reproduced over time and in other neighborhoods if it is successful. Nevertheless, the municipality has experience acquired through partnerships in the framework of decentralized cooperation (cultural activities at the level of neighborhood libraries and sports activities at the level of local sports fields), and the choice of partner associations is essential to achieve the desired impact.
5 Commitment :
Civic spaces for thematic action plans
5.1 Is the commitment verifiable?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The consultative bodies, made up of civil society actors, are responsible for producing consultative opinions on their own initiative or at the request of the local council on various themes (gender, disability, social inclusion, 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, childhood, culture, and heritage, etc.). The commitment also provides for these bodies to produce thematic action plans. The expected results are therefore measurable through the number of bodies set up, the opinions issued and the action plans approved.
Provide evidence for your answer:
5.2 Does the commitment language/activities clearly justify relevance to OGP values?
Yes
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
This commitment provides for a shift from a purely consultative role for consultative bodies, as provided for in the Organic Law on Municipalities, to a more involved and participatory operation leading to the development of action plans focusing on, among other things, adjustment measures to reduce gender-related social retribution, the inclusion of vulnerable groups or the integration of young people.
Provide evidence for your answer:
5.3 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
a new regulation, policy, practice or requirement.
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The initial role of the consultative bodies is limited to supporting the local council in aligning local policy with equality or social inclusion objectives. The commitment foresees transforming these bodies into spaces for citizen participation for the co-creation of thematic action plans for issues related to gender, disability, social inclusion, youth and childhood, culture and heritage, etc.
Provide evidence for your answer:
5.4 Please select one option that best describes the commitment:
is a positive change to a process, practice or policy but will not generate a binding or institutionalized change across government or specific institution(s).
Provide a brief explanation of your answer:
The content of the commitment shifts the limited role of consultative bodies to one of effective participation in shaping local development policy through a more appropriate reformulation of the communal action plan for gender, disability, social inclusion, youth and children, and culture and heritage.
Provide evidence for your answer:
5.5 Are there any recommended changes to the design of the commitment to help improve its implementation?
Only the communal action plan constitutes the reference document for all projects and activities programmed during its period; the recommended thematic action plans must be anchored in the communal action plan in order to have the same implementation conditions.
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