The open government community is more active than ever in Québec, Canada! For example, the Canadian Open DataBy opening up data and making it sharable and reusable, governments can enable informed debate, better decision making, and the development of innovative new services. Technical specifications: Polici... Summit, held in Montréal in 2021, was attended by over 500 people! This effervescence is the fruit of many years of effort, which have gone into establishing a legal framework for open government, forming partnerships with civil society, and implementing appropriate technological solutions.

A strong legal framework for open government

The Ministry of Cybersecurity and Digital Affairs (MCN) plays a fundamental role in promoting open government through its legal framework. 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 and stakeholder involvement are two important components of government digital transformationGovernments are working to increase access to and quality of government services, improve transparency, and create opportunities for participation by using information and communications technologies.... More, government digital data management, and cybersecurity.

Under the Act respecting the governance and management of the information resources of public bodies and government enterprises (hereinafter “the Act”), the Ministère de la Cybersécurité et du Numérique is responsible for proposing action plans to the Minister to promote the open government approach, and for seeing to their implementation. The MCN is supported in this by the comité en gouvernement ouvert ( open government committee). In Québec, open government is an integral part of the government digital transformation.

Moreover, joining OGP has launched the MCN into an effective co-creation processCollaboration between government, civil society and other stakeholders (e.g., citizens, academics, private sector) is at the heart of the OGP process. Participating governments must ensure that a dive.... One of the most innovative elements brought about by the OGP methodology was the evaluation of the co-creation process. The evaluation carried out during the first plan really helped to improve the functioning of the Open Government Committee for the development of the second plan. Unlike the first plan, the second plan proposes commitments entirely formulated by civil society through the Open Government Committee.

The open government priority of the last decade: open government data

In Québec, data openness is supported by the Partenariat Données Québec (Québec data partnership, hereinafter “the Partnership”), which brings together the Gouvernement du Québec, 20 municipalities, and 19 civil society organizations. 

In particular, the Partnership facilitates the coordination of data dissemination initiatives (priorities, Creative Commons Licenses, standardization, etc.) and reuse initiatives. 

In Québec, one of the most tangible benefits of open data concerns the coordination of the provincial government’s response to forest fires and floods.

In terms of forest fire control, the Forêt ouverte interactive map provides access to a wide range of data relating to natural disturbances, ecoforestry maps, aerial photos, LiDAR-derived products, wildlife areas, and the like. 

In addition, the Géo-Inondations application is offered to the public. For example, during the heavy floods of 2019, 78,000 consultations or downloads were carried out on data broadcast in near-real time, based on satellite data. In addition, a number of civil society organizations, generally from the academic world, use this data to carry out prospective studies to identify new potential flood zones. This enables municipalities to better plan their urban development. 

A new priority: cybersecurity of Québec territory in collaboration with civil society

The increase in cyber threats and cyberattacks worldwide is also having an impact on Québec’s cybersecurity. So, to ensure effective cybersecurity for critical infrastructures under Québec’s jurisdiction (health, educationAccountability within the public education system is key to improving outcomes and attainment, and accountability is nearly impossible without transparent policies and opportunities for participation ..., electrical infrastructures, etc.), as well as for businesses and the general public, collaboration with the ecosystem is more necessary than ever!

Various initiatives to better collaborate with ethical hackers have been put in place, such as the Plateforme de signalement proactif des vulnérabilités (proactive vulnerability reporting platform) and the Programme de prime aux bogues  (bug bounty program).

And there’s more to come!

Next steps: new themes and new collaborations

The establishment of a legal framework has encouraged the implementation of open government initiatives within the Québec government. For both civil society and government employees, 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 represents a catalyst for implementing best practices and initiatives.

Other noteworthy open government initiatives include the Fonds de recherches du Québec open access policy and the Consultation Québec platform.

A good way to quickly become part of the open government community is to join the LinkedIn group Données ouvertes au Québec. You can contact the team at gouvernement.ouvert@mcn.gouv.qc.ca.

Are you an international delegation interested in establishing a partnership with Québec? You can also write to relations.internationales-intergouvernementales@mcn.gouv.qc.ca.