Open Government Assistance to Myanmar (DK0048)

Denmark wishes to help develop and support inclusive democratic processes, good governance, and respect for human rights in Myanmar, and to contribute specifically to working towards the objective of a more open government with a view to encouraging Myanmar to aspire to join the OGP.

Commitment 15. Open Government assistance to Myanmar

Commitment Text:

Denmark wishes to help develop and support inclusive democratic processes, good governance, and respect for human rights in Myanmar, and to contribute specifically to working towards the objective of a more open government with a view to encouraging Myanmar to aspire to join the OGP.

(Commitment published 7 January 2015 at

http://www.digst.dk/Servicemenu/English/Policy and Strategy/Open Government/Open government assistance to Myanmar.aspx)

Responsible institution: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Supporting institution(s): None specified

Start date:  1 January 2015             End date: 30 June 2016

Commitment Aim:

This commitment aims to assist the government of Myanmar in developing democratic processes, specifically engaging Myanmar to aspire to join OGP. This commitment was added to the Danish action plan in January 2015 and was published on the website of the Danish Agency for Digitisation (AFD).^{[Note 55: Commitment language for commitment 15, AFD, http://www.digst.dk/Servicemenu/English/Policy-and-Strategy/Open-Government/Open-government-assistance-to-Myanmar.aspx]}

Status

Mid-term: Substantial

Currently Myanmar does not meet the eligibility criteria in any sections of OGP membership. Denmark intends to help prepare Myanmar’s regime for a transition into democracy. The Myanmar government set itself 2030 as the year in which to achieve that transition. Danish support for Myanmar’s democracy initiative was thus limited in scope, as it spans only until 2020.

The Danish government developed a strategy for facilitating Myanmar’s transition to democracy, outlined in the report “Denmark – Myanmar Country Programme 2016-2020” (DMCP).^{[Note 56: Concept note for the Denmark Myanmar Country Programme, Embassy of Denmark (Yangon), http://um.dk/en/~/media/UM/English-site/Documents/Danida/About-Danida/Danida%20transparency/Consultations/2015/Concept%20note%20Myanmar%202016-2020.pdf]} The report includes activities that address three thematic objectives: 

• promotion of peace, democratization, human rights and reforms
• improvement of access to and quality of basic education
• enhancement of inclusive and sustainable economic growth, including livelihoods for ethnic minorities

Milestones toward these objectives, set in a policy paper from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, were found to be on schedule and were coded as substantially completed. For further information, please see the mid-term IRM progress report.^{[Note 57: Denmark IRM mid-term report 2014-15, http://www.opengovpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2001/01/Denmark_IRM%20Progress%20Report%202014-15_Final_eng.pdf]}

End of term: Substantial

The timeline indicated in the original concept paper^{[Note 58: Concept note for the Denmark Myanmar Country Programme, Embassy of Denmark (Yangon), http://bit.ly/23fok1y]} was not included in the final version of this commitment, making progress difficult to track. According to the original timeline provided, which indicated that a policy paper was the expected output, this commitment has been substantially implemented.

Did it open government?

Access to information: Did not change

Civic Participation: Did not change

Public Accountability: Did not change

Although Myanmar is among the most corrupt countries according to Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (ranked 147 from 168 countries), its score has improved from 15 points out of 100 in 2012 to 22 points in 2015.^{[Note 59: A country or territory’s score indicates the perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0 - 100, where 0 means that a country is perceived as highly corrupt and 100 means it is perceived as very clean. http://www.transparency.org/country#MMR]} However, Myanmar only meets 6% of OGP’s eligibility criteria - 75% is required to become part of the initiative.

If the DMCP is fully implemented, it could prove to be transformative for Myanmar. The strategic considerations outlined in the DMCP document and this commitment articulate Denmark’s efforts to promote judicial reform, non-discrimination, transparency, and accountability through government-to-government interaction. Another goal is to build civil society capacity in Myanmar.  However, the relevance to OGP values in Denmark is unclear.

Carried forward?

If the government decides to carry this commitment over to the third action plan, it could add value by promoting transparency and accountability - especially access to justice and human rights - via Danish companies with business interests in Myanmar.