Open Government Challenge Areas

Improve effectiveness of access to information legal frameworks.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Introduction of new freedom of/access to information legal frameworks or amendments that significantly improve existing ones.
• Reforms that increase access to information oversight authorities’ independence, capacity, and integrity.
• Activities that substantially improve the implementation and enforcement of freedom of / access to information legal frameworks, including through accessibility, use, and reuse of data.
• Reforms that introduce, strengthen, or implement proactive disclosure frameworks that meet at least two of the following: 1) In laws enacted by the legislature, 2) Cross-government in scope, 3) Require disclosure in open formats
• Reforms that improve agency by agency access to information performance reporting and data (including requests, affirmative responses, response times, use of exemptions, appeals, and outcomes of appeals).

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• General transparency or information disclosure activities (e.g. transparency portals) that are not enshrined in a legal framework.
• Improve effectiveness of access to information legal frameworks.

Develop, strengthen, and/or implement actions to tackle corruption and illicit finance at the national and local levels.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge should include at least one of the following areas:

• Tackling illicit finance through transparency of beneficial ownership of companies and assets (real estate and virtual assets), asset recovery measures and regulation of professional service providers.
• Open contracting with meaningful public participation (co-design, co-implementation, or monitoring) that goes beyond participation in training, awareness-raising, or consultations.
• Political finance and asset and interest disclosure, focusing on reforms that implement, and go beyond, the UNCAC Resolution 11-7 on political finance.
• New or amended lobbying regulations or lobbying data disclosure, including proportionate measures that safeguard the right to meaningful participation of civil society organisations.
• Extractive industry transparency, including measures to address corruption and illicit finance risks in the sector.
• Anti-corruption strategies, roadmaps, or coordination mechanisms with clear implementation, reporting and monitoring mechanisms that enable public participation and oversight.

Through this challenge, governments can improve policy, implementation and interoperability across the above mentioned areas. Governments are especially encouraged to advance ambitious reforms that strengthen links and interoperability of data across these areas.

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• Anti-corruption policies that do not explicitly address the policies listed above, such as general strengthening of anti-corruption institutions 
• Election information integrity (covered by Challenge on Media Freedom and Information Integrity) 
• Whistleblower protections (covered by Challenge on Justice)

Strengthen enabling environment and spaces for civil society and civic action.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Co-creating, with civil society, strategies, policies and/or laws that strengthen civic space.
• Reforms related to improving freedom of association, strengthening the enabling environment for civil society organisations to operate with minimal restrictions.
• Reforms related to improving freedom of assembly, at national and local levels. 
• Reforms related to improving freedom of expression, such as protection of human rights defenders and other activists.
• Strengthen enabling environment and spaces for civil society and civic action

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• Reforms related to protecting media freedom specifically. These are covered by the Challenge on Media Freedom and Information Integrity.

Strengthen transparent, participatory, and collaborative climate policy making and implementation.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Developing or implementing standing mechanisms for civic participation in policymaking on climate, environment, and/or the energy transition.
• Translating specific open government-relevant commitments or provisions from regional or global climate, environmental, and/or energy transition agreements and treaties into domestic policies, laws, or practices.
• Enabling and/or undertaking tools or mechanisms that measure and publicly report on the domestic implementation progress of the above-mentioned regional or global agreements and/or specific open government provisions. 
• Ensuring public oversight and transparency for climate finance, fossil fuel-related spending and sustainability in procurement processes.

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• Participatory processes that are not ongoing, such as time-bound consultations.

Strengthen transparency and public oversight of AI, automated-decision making, data protection frameworks and digital public infrastructure (DPI.)

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Transparency of automated decision-making by governments, such as publication of underlying data, model cards, or transparency registers.
• Embedding human rights impact assessments in the use of new technologies.
• Creating public grievance mechanisms where technology is used in public-facing services or processes.
• Creating or strengthening independent oversight agencies that can scrutinise the government’s use of technology.
• Creating specific public participation opportunities to shape public sector use of digital technologies and/or the governance of new technologies, including digital public infrastructures.
• Creating specific mechanisms that promote digital inclusion within AI, DPI, automated-decision making or data protection frameworks, or that prevent online discrimination.
• Reforms that protect personal data and privacy through establishing transparency and accountability mechanisms, such as consent frameworks or clear data ownership models. 

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area: 

• Reforms that promote the use of digital technologies without a clear focus on how the technologies will be used and governed: including digitizing public services, mobile phone apps, AI tool adoption, etc. Reforms that leverage digital tools towards topics covered in other Challenge areas will be assessed according to those areas. 
• Open data reforms, including data portals.
• Reforms that increase technical readiness for advanced technology application, including increasing connectivity.

Advance institutionalized* public oversight and inclusion reforms across the budget and spending cycle.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area (i.e. budgeting, revenue, spending, auditing and debt management) are:

• Strengthen the role of the legislature, and other relevant institutions, in approving, monitoring, reviewing and publishing the budget, fiscal and debt related data and reports, from an open government perspective.
• Reforms or activities that empower independent fiscal oversight institutions (SAI’s) and Ombudsman offices to enforce transparency and accountability measures throughout the budget cycle.
• Implement participatory mechanisms, targeting underrepresented groups, to inform spending priorities and monitor budget execution.
• Institutionalising* online and offline tools to promote participation across the budget and spending cycle.

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• Reforms that solely promote accessibility to the general public of fiscal data and fiscal information, including open data, data portals, mobile phone apps, and plain language guides such as Citizen Budgets without establishing corresponding institutionalized* mechanisms for public participation or oversight.

Adopt open government reforms to promote the full participation of women, youth, LGBTQIA+ people, people with disabilities, indigenous communities, elderly people and other under-represented groups in the political, social and economical spheres.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Gender-targeted reforms such as mechanisms to tackle gender-based violence, both online and offline.
• Produce and make publicly accessible data disaggregated by communities, such as open gender data.
• Establish standing mechanisms to involve underrepresented groups in decision-making, for example gender equality commissions, youth councils, advisory bodies, or ongoing participatory processes.
• Institutionalize open government approaches that address gender equality and inclusion across government.

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• Initiatives to produce disaggregated data without making them publicly accessible.
• Participatory processes that are not ongoing, such as time-bound consultations.
• Reforms aimed to empower women or other impacted communities that do not have a direct open government angle, e.g. establishing quotas for political office.

Advance people-centered justice reforms.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Concrete measures to strengthen the independence, openness, accountability and responsiveness of justice institutions, specifically:
• Actions that strengthen judicial independence and integrity (e.g. independent councils for discipline, complaints, and oversight; transparency of selection and appointment processes) 
• Tools, mechanisms and/or processes that publicly measure the openness of justice institutions
• Tools, mechanisms and/or processes that publicly measure how justice institutions are responding to and/or meeting citizens’ justice needs 
• Appropriate and effective redress mechanisms that involve the public (e.g. whistleblower protections, right to information appeals, complaint mechanisms.)

• Institutionalization* of:
• Mechanisms for participatory and inclusive approaches to justice policy and service design
• Other transparency and/or accountability practices

Develop or reinforce legal and policy frameworks or initiatives that protect the rights of journalists, strengthen independent media and / or promote information integrity.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Remove criminal defamation, libel, and other penalties for reporting and tackling the use of SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) to silence journalists and activists.
• Create supportive environments for revenue generation and mechanisms that allow for independent and publicly-funded media platforms and avoid the concentration of media ownership at national and/or local level.
• Reforms related to reviewing or passing new media laws aligned with open government principles.
• Reforms or initiatives that strengthen information integrity (both online and in traditional media) and fight mis- and disinformation.

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• Reforms related to protecting freedom of expression broadly, without explicit reference to media. 
• Reforms related to protecting activists are covered by Challenge #3: Civic Space.

Mainstream or embed fit-for-purpose, high quality and inclusive public participation practices across key government sectors, processes, and institutions.

Actions and reforms that fit within the scope of this challenge area are:

• Passing and implementing laws and policies that mainstream, embed or legally protect participation across the policy-making process (e.g. establishing legally enforceable participation requirements or institutionalizing a mechanism for participation, such as a standing citizens’ assembly.)
• Creating participation teams, centres of good practice, or independent participation bodies that are responsible for improving public participation in general or within specific sectoral reforms.
• Integrating public participation requirements into competency frameworks and/or training programs for public officials. 
• Developing mandatory minimum standards and guidance for the conduct of public participation, across government.

Reforms that do not fit within the scope of this challenge area:

• One-off opportunities for public participation (e.g. making a specific policy available for public comment, co-creating a particular strategy with the public.)
• The establishment of a digital participation platform by a single ministry or agency, with no commitment to cross-government adoption.