Independent Evaluation of OGP

In 2019, OGP funders commissioned Oxford Policy Management (OPM) to undertake an independent evaluation of the OGP’s core institutions, and the efforts of the OGP 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.... (SU) in particular. The evaluation was supported by the British Department for International Development (DFID, now FCDO), the Hewlett Foundation and the Open Society Foundations.

The evaluation was tasked with considering questions on the 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..., effectiveness, and efficiency of the OGP platform and strategies, covering reform processes in different contexts and analysis of the factors that drive, distort or block reforms. It covered five national contexts (Colombia, Kenya, Nigeria, Philippines, Ukraine) and local contexts (Elgeyo-Marakwet County in Kenya and South Cotabato in the Philippines), across three thematic priorities: beneficial ownershipDisclosing beneficial owners — those who ultimately control or profit from a business — is essential for combating corruption, stemming illicit financial flows, and fighting tax evasion. Technical... More, open contractingA transparent procurement process, known as open contracting, increases competition, improves public service delivery, and ensures governments better value for their money. Technical specifications: C... More and civic engagement.

With an emphasis on generating insights and learning that could be used in real time to support improved performance, the evaluation used developmental evaluation (DE) as an overarching approach. DE is a highly flexible approach, well-suited to a portfolio of interventions like OGP’s, operating in complex environments, where engagement is constantly adapting and innovating in response to emerging opportunities and constraints.

Guided by the OGP’s current strategic priorities, OPM and OGP jointly identified a set of core priorities into “Issues Papers” to cluster the findings of the evaluation and discuss practical implications for its decision-making and planning processes.

• Executive Summary
• Introduction & Methodology
• Issue Paper # 1: Relevance and resilience of the OGP platform in the face of internal and external shocks, and what may be done to increase resilience of the platform, such as investing in champions or promoting institutionalisation.
• Issue Paper # 2: Engagement and 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 non-government stakeholders with the OGP platform across the different stages of 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... co-creation and implementation, and in different reforms and processes. The paper challenges OGP to be clearer about the purpose and means for strengthening inclusion.
• Issue Paper # 3: 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 Implementation: what the Support Unit in collaboration with country stakeholders and partners can do to enhance the effectiveness of their support to Action Plan implementation. The paper focuses on the implementation phase as much support and guidance to date has focused on co-creation.
• Issue Paper # 4: Connecting global and country engagements: exploring the challenges of working across global, national and local levels. Why for example some country actors feel left behind by the pace of change in the policy priorities promoted by OGP at global level. Conversely, opportunities exist for closer alignment between the levels.