New Co-Chairs and Members of the OGP Steering Committee are Announced

The Government of South Africa and Civil Society Leader Alejandro Gonzalez to join OGP’s Leadership Group 

In October 2014 the co-chairsThe leadership of the Steering Committee is made up of four co-chairs who provide strategic guidance and support to advance OGP’s overarching priorities. Co-Chairs serve two-year terms beginning on ... of the Open Government PartnershipThe Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a multi-stakeholder initiative focused on improving government transparency, ensuring opportunities for citizen participation in public matters, and strengthen... More will change.  As the Government of Indonesia and Rakesh Rajani complete their one-year term as lead chairs, the current support chairs – the Government of Mexico and Suneeta Kaimal – will assume the role of lead chairs.

In preparation for this transition, the OGP Steering CommitteeThe Steering Committee is OGP’s executive decision-making body. Its role is to develop, promote and safeguard OGP’s values, principles and interests; establish OGP’s core ideas, policies, and ru... has now selected two new co-chairs to join OGP’s leadership group, first as support chairs from October 2014, then as lead chairs from October 2015.  The Government of South Africa, led by the Department for Public Service and Administration, will become the government co-chair, and Alejandro Gonzalez, Executive Director of GESOC, will become the civil society co-chair.

South Africa is a founding member of OGP, and has now completed two National Action Plans containing commitments to advance transparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More, accountability and public participationGiving citizens opportunities to provide input into government decision-making leads to more effective governance, improved public service delivery, and more equitable outcomes. Technical specificatio.... They will be the first African country to lead OGP, following the previous lead government chairs of the US, Brazil, UK, Indonesia and Mexico.

Alejandro Gonzalez leads the nongovernmental organization GESOC, A.C, a Mexican research-based civil society organization committed to improving the effectiveness, transparency and responsiveness of government, CSOs and private firms towards social value creation. He has been involved in the development of Mexico’s OGP National Action Plans and has served on the OGP Steering Committee since 2014. 

The OGP Steering Committee – which oversees the strategic direction of the initiative – is also changing, with 8 new members joining an enlarged group of 22 members. Half of the members represent civil society and half represent governments. 

Government Members of the Steering Committee

The election for new government members of the Steering Committee concluded on July 30th with 58 of OGP’s 64 member countries casting a vote. The US, Brazil, UK, Philippines and Tanzania were re-elected, while France, Georgia and Croatia will be joining for the first time. Countries have received Steering Committee term lengths according to their position in the ballot. 

Civil Society Members of the Steering Committee

The civil society members of the Steering Committee are also changing, with the following being selected to join the Steering Committee in October: 

1. Sugeng Bahagijo, Indonesian, Executive Director of the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID), and a member of the Asia Democracy Network  
2. Cecilia Blondet, Peruvian, Executive Director of Proética, the Peruvian chapter of TI and Former Minister for the Advancement of Women and Human Development  
3. Alvin Mosioma, Kenyan, Founder and Director of TaxPlacing transparency, accountability, and participation at the center of tax policy can ensure that burdens are distributed equitably across society. Technical specifications: Commitments related to c... JusticeTo address barriers that prevent citizens from having their justice needs met, OGP participating governments are working to expand transparency, accountability, and inclusion into all systems of justi... Network-Africa  
4. Mukelani Dimba, South African, Executive Director of the Open Democracy Advice Centre  
5. Manish Bapna, American, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of the World Resources Institute (WRI) 

In addition Nathaniel Heller from Global Integrity was asked to remain on stand-by should a vacancy come up before the 2015 rotation process begins.

There were 37 applicants from around the world who were assessed by an independent selection committee. The selection committee also interviewed shortlisted candidates. 

Timeline

The new Steering Committee will formally be in place from October 1st 2014. Incoming members will be invited to observe the final meeting of the current Steering Committee on September 25th, following the OGP High Level Event in New York City on September 24th.

More details on the rotation result are available here: http://www.opengovpartnership.org/about/steering-committee/steering-committee-2014-rotation-results