Provision of the Federal Government’s Integrity Report as open data and extension of reporting to include aspects of Internal Audit work (DE0033)

What is the public problem that the commitment will address? An efficient and forward-looking government is nothing without the trust of its citizens. That trust must actively be earned. The federal administration’s strategic integrity manage-ment forms part of these activities. One of its instruments is the report on integrity in the federal administration, otherwise known as the Integrity Report. To date, separate reports have been published on the various aspects of government integrity such as preventing corruption, payments from the private sector (sponsorship, donations and other gifts), and the deployment of external entities within the federal government. These differ considerably in terms of their reporting cycles, the periods they cover, and their formats, for example.

What is the commitment? At the recommendation of the German supreme federal audit institution, the Bundesrechnungshof, for the first time the 2020 Integrity Report is to consolidate the reports on preventing corruption, third-party payments and the deployment of external entities within the federal government. From the end of 2021 onwards there will thus be one standard report on integrity within the federal administration, that will publish content with the user in mind as structured, machine-readable open data. Internal Audit (IR) oversees the activities of the administration, but is also focused on prevention. In addition to its remit to assess the legality and efficiency of the administration, it is also a means of preventing corruption. Expanding the Integrity Report to include aspects of Internal Audit work is intended in future to recognise its importance in this regard. It will also increase the transparency of government action in this area. Like the individual reports of the past, the Integrity Report will be published once it has been presented to the lead committees of the German Bundestag. Where possible, the information in the appendix will be offered for the first time as open data, and thus made available via GovData.

How will the commitment contribute to solving the public problem? This commitment will result in a comprehensive annual report on areas of federal administration integrity that have to date been the subject of separate reports. The new report is also broader in scope, because it includes aspects of Internal Audit work. Publishing the report in open data format makes it easier for all concerned to find out about strategic integrity management within the federal administration. Consolidating previously separate reports and expanding that coverage will make for better data quality and more standardised reporting.

Why is this commitment relevant to OGP values? Standard reporting obligations on integrity in the federal administration, the extension of that obligation to include aspects of Internal Audit work, and the provision of appendix information in open data format promote transparency and accountability in the federal administration. This may strengthen trust in government. Measures to combat corruption are a particularly important dimension of open government.

Additional information • Integrity regulations are explained on the web presence of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community.42 • G20 Anti-corruption Open Data Principles (G20 Leaders’ Communiqué at the Antalya Summit, 15/16 November 2015); G20 High-Level Principles on Organizing Against Corruption (G20 Leaders’ Declaration, “Shaping an interconnected world”, Hamburg, 7/8 July 2017); G20 High-Level Principles for Promoting Public Sector Integrity Through the Use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) (G20 Anti-Corruption Ministers Meeting Ministerial Communiqué, 22 October 2020) • Meeting Ministerial Communiqué 22. Oktober 2020)

Milestones Start Date Implementation by Presentation of the first Integrity Report (2020) to the Committee on Internal Affairs and Community (InnA) and the Budget Committee (HHA) 30 September 2021 Publication of the first Integrity Report, in German and English, on the website of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community (BMI) October/November 2021 Provision of the appendix to the report as open data October/November 2021 Presentation of the 2021 Report to the InnA and HHA, containing Internal Audit information for the first time 30 September 2022 Publication of the 2021 Report, in German and English, on the BMI website, containing Internal Audit information for the first time October/November 2022 Provision of the appendix to the report as open data, containing Internal Audit information October/November 2022

Action Plan Review

Commitment 6.4: Provide the Federal Government’s Integrity Report as open data and extend reporting to include aspects of Internal Audit work