Uruguay Design Report 2018-2020

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 Uruguay’s fourth 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... was better structured and included more dialogue instances than previous plans, demonstrating the country’s strengthened OGP process. However, there are opportunities for improving the geographic and thematic diversity of civil society, as well as its sustainability. The IRM researcher recommends identifying opportunities to allow for organizations to allocate time and capacities to better and more sustainably commit to the action plans (e.g. technical assistance and support or learning events). There is also an opportunity to strengthen future plans in terms of 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..., creating feedback channels to be accountable to stakeholders participating in the implementation cycle. 

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 voluntary initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote 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, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. 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 ... conducts yearly assessments of each OGP member’s activities to ensure that governments comply with their commitments. Uruguay joined OGP in 2011 and has since implemented three action plans. This report assesses the design of the country’s fourth action plan.

Overview of the action plan

Uruguay’s fourth action plan demonstrates the political will to continue strengthening the open government agenda. Through systematic work, the Open Government Working Group reached a level of maturity that was reflected in a well-structured action plan.

The Working Group included representatives from the Executive Branch, the JudiciaryWhile a majority of open government reforms occur within the executive branch, OGP members are increasingly taking on commitments to increase the openness of the judicial branch. Technical specificati..., regional governments, and representatives of the Open Government Network, integrated by civil society organizations. However, unlike the previous action plan, it lacked representation from the legislature and academic partners. The co-creation process included more dialogue instances than previous action plans, as well as equal representation between government and civil society for decision-making. Civil society was underrepresented geographically and thematically. It remains a challenge to recruit organizations whose main focus is not open government, as well as those based outside the capital city.

Despite the more structured and mature co-creation process, the plan was less ambitious than the previous one, with no potentially transformative commitments, while the previous one included six. The plan includes 39 commitments assigned to 28 organizations, 21 of which reflect civil society demands. Commitments are grouped in 11 thematic areas: environmental protection and sustainable use of natural resources; 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 and generation equality; transparency of electoral processes and anti-corruption; access to public information; open justiceAn open, independent, and impartial justice system serves as a foundation for better access to justice by fulfilling all people’s civil liberties and allowing individuals to more effectively protect...; open municipalities in the Canelones Department; participatory societies; equality, development, and citizenry; transparency and accountability; health and wellbeing; and the Internet of things.

 Table 2. Noteworthy commitments 

Recommendations

The IRM recommendations aim to inform the design of the upcoming action plan and guide the implementation of the current plan.

Table 3. Five KEY IRM recommendations