Statement by HE Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma on the Five Years OGP Celebration

Salutations:

Hearty congratulations to the Open Government Partners on the celebration of five years of hard work and unwavering commitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action... to the promotion of accountability and 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. Well done to the OGP for the five successful years of relentless campaign to enhance good governance. It has been five rewarding years of partnerships in promoting fiscal transparency, access to information, public officials’ disclosure of assets and citizens’ engagement. These goals are central to the effective management of the state and in the last five years, you could not have driven on a better, more impactful and more transformative path.

The course the OGP has championed in the last five years may not be new. Several years before the advent of the OGP, in 2008, we established the Open Government Initiative; several years before the OGP, the public officials’ disclosure of assets had been part of our governance system, several years before the advent of the OGP, we had taken steps to ensure access to public information and we have always endeavored to engage citizens in the governance of the state.

But Mr. Chairman, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, the efforts of the OGP in the last five years have reinvigorated our commitment to these shared values of transparency and accountability; they have given a new meaning to the need for fiscal transparency and have further underpinned the importance of getting the citizens even more involved in the business of running the state. These are no mean achievements and are good enough reasons for all of us to celebrate.

We in Sierra Leone have a good enough reason to celebrate our engagement with the OGP in the last five years. Following the 2011 EITI report, the government, in collaboration with civil society, conducted a gap analysis in view of some of the key issues raised in the EITI report. The analysis indicated that one of the major concerns had to do with the public disclosure of contracts and lease agreements. In response, in its first National Action PlanAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen..., 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 Secretariat in Sierra Leone committed to the public disclosure of mining and agricultural lease agreements and contracts. And yes, the National Minerals Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture now publish those important pieces of information on their respective websites. And there has been a follow up on these laudable efforts. Some Civil Society Organisations have expressed the need to know about the 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... incentives given to mining, agricultural and other companies.

Given my government’s commitment to access to information through the Right to Access Information Commission and with OGP’s constructive engagement, Sierra Leone is now going to publish tax incentives information granted to large investments.

We in Sierra Leone believe that the course championed by OGP in the last five years is for a fairer, more inclusive and more effective governance. We are therefore committed to the advancement these values. Our score in Open Budget Survey is 52% in 2015 from 39% in 2012; our aspiration is to achieve more than 90% going forward. Sierra Leone will also ensure the publication of the national data on sexual violence and guarantee that perpetrators are brought to account. My Government will pass a robust and proactive Archives and Records Management Bill to support the implementation of the Right to Access Information Law. We will continue to use the OGP process to strengthen ongoing open government initiatives; working with civil society in aligning our national development agenda with the Sustainable Development GoalsOGP countries are experimenting with open government innovations to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 16+ which includes peaceful, just and inclusive societies... and to maintain the gains we have made in the last five years.

Once again, Hearty Congratulations!