Institutional Innovation Laboratory to promote Accessible and Inclusive Elections (ARBA0009)

Commitment ID

ARBA0009

Commitment Title

Institutional Innovation Laboratory to promote Accessible and Inclusive Elections

Problem

In the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA), people with disabilities are still facing persistent barriers to exercise their political rights in conditions of equality and autonomy. These barriers -whether physical, communicational, procedural or attitudinal- limit their full participation in both electoral and institutional processes, and vary according to the type of disability. This situation not only undermines individual rights, but also contributes to the erosion of confidence in democratic institutions at the local level.

Status quo

The Laboratory for Institutional Innovation (LABIIN) of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, co-created within the framework of the commitment “Federal Open State Program” of the Fifth National Action Plan for Open Government (2022-2024), offers a collaborative platform for political and institutional reform. Through participatory dialogue and experimentation, LABIIN brings together proposals from citizens, civil society and institutions, enriched by innovative practices from other jurisdictions. As a result of the work with CSOs during 2024, persistent barriers faced by persons with disabilities in exercising their political rights were identified. This gap between formal guarantees and actual access to their rights undermines democratic legitimacy. LABIIN addresses this challenge by promoting, from the beginning, the design of inclusive policies, based on the lived experience of affected communities and informed by evidence and comparative studies.

Action

This proposal aims to improve electoral accessibility through the co-design and testing of solutions, especially focused on the voting instrument. The process begins with working sessions with civil society organizations related to the issue to identify accessibility challenges and collaboratively design electoral simulations. From these sessions, specific tools will be selected and tested in successive iterations with the participation of persons with disabilities. Their experiences will be documented through surveys and other feedback mechanisms. A final report will present the results, indicators and actionable recommendations, which will be shared with the relevant authorities and incorporated into the LABIIN platform. The emphasis is on generating concrete results and ensuring that at least one co-created solution is developed for each identified vulnerability.

How will the commitment contribute to solving the public problem described above?

Through structured collaboration with civil society organizations and the direct participation of the target population (people with disabilities), the process will identify concrete barriers and design context-appropriate responses. The objective is not only to produce a final report, but to ensure that its findings guide public institutions and translate into a real impact on policies and people. Satisfaction indicators regarding the level of accessibility will be defined in advance and the results will be shared with the relevant electoral bodies. This commitment is designed to transcend electoral cycles, allowing its adjustment and sustained application beyond a specific election.

What long-term goal as identified in your Open Government Strategy does this commitment relate to?

This commitment is linked to the objective of promoting citizen participation, as it seeks to involve the target audience of the public policy from the design stage to the testing stages of the prototypes. It aims to guarantee useful and accessible tools, while ensuring that citizen contributions are visible and translate into concrete impacts.

Primary Policy Area

Elections & Political Finance, Inclusion

Primary Sector

Public Services (general)

What OGP value is this commitment relevant to?