Training for civil servants on open government principles (ES0089)

What is the problem/need that is desired to resolve with the commitment? The Open Government and different pillars on which it is supported—transparency/accountability (active advertising and right of access), participation and collaboration (open data)—represent a new conception of the Administration. This commitment covers the gaps detected within the Administration in which the understanding of the Open Government refers to the following: it is necessary to disseminate and make known what this new conception consists of; the obligations of transparency and its benefits to society, making accountability possible; the organisation existing in the community, and how the requests to access public information are processed, as well as their importance for the citizenship; the concepts of reuse and open data; the possibilities of participating and its effects, all with the objective of having a staff at the service of the citizenship that is more aware and committed to the values of Open Government. It is not just for civil servants that already form part of the Administration, but also for the new civil servants who access it for the first time. Likewise, it is considered appropriate to make an effort so that this training or dissemination reaches the key staff of the local and Island Administration. Therefore, this measure, once implemented, will have very positive effects on society, as it will improve the management of transparency at all levels of the Administration, which will result in a better service for the citizenship

Objectives of the commitment To train the civil servants on the conceptual bases, values, tools and strategies of open government. To train and reinforce attitudes of civil servants regarding their relationship with the citizenship based on transparency, accountability, participation and collaboration. To promote the internalisation of the obligations and commitments of the civil servants in their relationship with the citizenship. To apply criteria based on the knowledge of the values of open government when selecting new civil servants.

Brief description of the commitment To plan and execute training activities on Open Government and any of its three pillars indented for the civil servants. It also includes planning and developing some dissemination and awareness raising sessions, for both the civil servants themselves and the Autonomous Community, as they are staff of the local and island administration, with the collaboration of the Federation of Municipalities of the Balearic Islands and the Island Councils. In addition, the commitment also includes a review of the programmes that serve as a base to select new civil servants and incorporate content about open government.

How does the commitment contribute to solve the problem or cover the need? Expanding the training and disseminating the culture based on the principles of Open Government among civil servants is necessary to generate attitudes of transparency and openness of the Administration towards the citizenship. 211 This training and dissemination will allow raising awareness of Open Government, and train the civil servants on the conceptual bases, values, tools and strategies of open government, reinforcing a new attitude of the civil servants in their relationship with the citizenship based on transparency, accountability, participation and collaboration. The specific training on transparency tools and the Transparency Website, at various levels, will allow improving compliance with the active advertising obligations, and improve the awareness raising of the civil servants regarding the importance of transparency. Likewise, the specific training on the right of access for key employees will allow improving the management, deadlines and quality of the responses. The dissemination of the key concepts in awareness raising sessions, as well as through the introduction of the content in the access to public function programmes, are key elements to raise awareness among civil servants regarding the values of open government.

Why is the commitment relevant with respect to the values of Open Government? It promotes, strengthens and improves the quality of participation in the public management, allowing the citizenship to participate in making public decisions with the objective of achieving better results and better democratic quality. If civil servants know the importance of participation through the Open Government dissemination mechanisms that are proposed, logically these mechanisms will be expanded in the management of public affairs. It delves deeper into transparency, open data and accountability of Public Administrations through carrying out actions aimed at its improvement and the evaluation of the results of the plans and programmes. Information about this training will be provided on the corresponding websites with the sufficient transparency. In addition, this commitment specifically serves to disseminate, and with that, to delve deeper into the aforementioned tools. It contributes to building a system of public integrity, strengthening the ethical values and mechanisms to bolster the integrity of the public institutions and reinforce the trust of the citizenship. The dissemination of the Open Government values strengthens this system of public integrity. It raises awareness among society and civil servants about the values of Open Government, contributing to the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda in order to advance towards a just, peaceful and inclusive society This commitment especially seeks to raise this awareness among civil servants.

Additional information Budget of the Sessions for 2020: €15,000

Activities of the commitment Start date End date Introduction of the agenda on Open Governments in the selection programmes Start in general groups. Pending for training body programmes. 31/12/2021 Presentation of the training plan for 2020 Presented in January 2020 Execution of training activities of the 2020 Plan regarding open government, with special reference to the right of access September 2020 November 2020 Sessions to raise awareness regarding the right of access intended for civil servants of local and island administrations, as well as for key staff, such as legal services of these entities. A session is expected to be held in each one of the islands September 2020 December 2020 212 Presentation of the training plan for 2021, with different proposed training activities in different areas related to Open Government December 2020 January 2021 Execution of training activities related to the 2021 Open Government Plan: workshops on transparency applications courses to delve deeper into management and processing right of access, training in Open Government with special reference to active advertising and open data, etc. January 2021 December 2021 Sessions to raise awareness about Open Government intended for staff of the Autonomous Region and its public sector January 2021 December 2021 Presentation of the training plan for 2022, with different proposed training activities in different areas related to Open Government December 2021 January 2022 Execution of training activities for the 2022 Plan regarding open government January 2022 December 2022 Presentation of the training plan for 2023, with different proposed training activities in different areas related to Open Government. December 2022 January 2023 Execution of training activities for the 2023 Plan regarding open government January 2023 December 2023