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Political Integrity

Providing for transparency in the funding of campaigns, political parties, and democratic politics is an essential accountability mechanism for democratic government and is a growing focus area in OGP.

Overview | Recommendations | Partners | Documents | Commitments | Recent Posts

Overview

Money is a necessary and growing component in modern competitive elections. However, it provokes distrust and cynicism among the electorate, and can be a tool for corruption by those with resources.

Ensuring transparency of money in politics has increasingly become an area of interest for OGP members, who are working on ways to empower citizens to oversee and monitor the source of election financing. Early indications show that political finance commitments are highly effective and indicate strong results. Tackling the ill effects of money in politics also helps level the playing field and open access to political processes to women and other groups who may be traditionally excluded. 

This policy brief on political finance provides a helpful review.

Broken Links Cover Image

Broken Links

How can open data help shine a light on political corruption and make political systems fairer and more inclusive? How can we further link people and data to create a chain of accountability? Explore our new report.

Episode 2 – story page
Latvia

Blowing the Whistle on Corruption in Latvia

In this Voices of Open Government episode, we explore the systems in place to safeguard the identities of government employees, activists, civil society organizers and other individuals who blow the whistle on illicit activities.

Recommendations

  • Establish a mandatory public register of meetings between lobbyists and public officials. Madrid has a public online registry where lobbyists must disclose any meetings with members of the City Council. Ireland created a public registry of lobbyists and an advisory group, ultimately increasing citizen access to information and improving accountability in the policy-making process. 
  • Create open, equitable, and responsive channels for public consultation. After Chile’s Law on Lobbying came into force in 2014, the government adopted measures to implement it effectively, including holding public consultations where citizens could offer recommendations on how the law should be carried out.
  • Introduce mandatory codes of conduct for both officials and lobbyists and ensure there are appropriate sanctions in place for non-compliance. According to the International Standards for Lobbying Regulation, as of May 2015, 16 OGP countries have national lobbying regulations.
  • Target political equity measures to promote the participation and representation of women and politically marginalized groups, including campaign finance reforms and minimum standards for participation. In Sri Lanka, the government committed to implementing and maintaining a 25 percent mandatory quota for women within local governments, dramatically increasing women’s representation in local elected office.

Partners

Commitments

Resources

  1. Broken Links

    How can open data help shine a light on political corruption and make political systems fairer and more inclusive? How…

    2022, , Web Page

  2. Global Data Barometer: Political Integrity

    In this module, the Global Data Barometer, OGP, and Transparency International share resources for both policy-makers and civil society organizations…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  3. The New Leadership Playbook

    Nothing about the inherent nature of business dictates that irreversible environmental damage, poor labor standards and conformity in leadership ...

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  4. Le Créateur d’Engagements Anti-Corruption (Français)

    Global Integrity, Open Data Charter, ILDA , AODN, et OD4D partagent 4 étapes pour générer des engagements OGP de données…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  5. The Anticorruption Commitment Creator (English)

    Global Integrity, Open Data Charter, ILDA , AODN, and OD4D share four steps to generating OGP open data commitments to…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  6. El Creador de Compromisos Anti-Corrupción (Español)

    Global Integrity, Open Data Charter, ILDA , AODN, y OD4D comparten cuatro pasos para generar compromisos OGP de datos abiertos…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  7. Actions to Tackle Corruption

    Corruption continues to undermine democratic institutions worldwide. Without strong commitments focused on political integrity, achieving OGP’s partnership-wide goals of economic…

    2021, , Web Page

  8. Recommendations on Women Against Corruption for OGP Action Plans

    Transparency International shares recommendations for governments serious about tackling the impact of corruption on women and ensuring their participation in…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  9. Recommendations on Asset and Interest Declaration for OGP Action Plans

    This resource from Transparency International provides guidance for OGP members on developing comprehensive, robust and accessible asset and interest declaration…

    2020, Document, PDF

  10. OECD Public Integrity Handbook

    The OECD Public Integrity Handbook provides guidance to government, business and civil society on implementing the OECD Recommendation on Public…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  11. Political Finance Transparency Policy Brief

    Transparency in the funding of  campaigns, political parties and democratic politics is at the heart of the international anti-corruption agenda.

    2019, Resource, Web Page

  12. Recommendations on Political Financing for Open Government Partnership National Action Plans

    Transparency International shares why tackling political financing is a priority for OGP members, trends and good practice in regulation, and…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  13. Recommendations on Lobbying for OGP Action Plans

    This briefing discusses why tackling lobbying is a priority for OGP members, trends and good practice in regulation existing and…

    , Outbound Link, Web Page

  14. Lobby Law in Chile: Democratizing Access to Public Authorities

    Since 2004, succeeding governments in Chile have launched legal initiatives to improve transparency, probity and principles of good government, including…

    2016, Research Product, Web Page

Recent Content

1
Kenya

Reform Space to Watch: High-Value Data in Kenya

As the new OGP government co-chair where will the Kenyan government display innovation in reforms and civil society issues? Read more to see where Kenya could lead international initiatives in anti-corruption, democratic reform, and climate change.

Broken Links Cover Image

Broken Links

How can open data help shine a light on political corruption and make political systems fairer and more inclusive? How can we further link people and data to create a chain of accountability? Explore our new report.

voting in an election

Charting the Course to Strengthen Political Integrity

This analysis was originally published on the Global Data Barometer website here. Governments should serve citizens rather than the other way around. This concept is at the heart of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), an international initiative that brings together more than…

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Open Government Partnership