scholarly journals Which Countries Have More Open Governments? Assessing Structural Determinants of Openness

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (8) ◽  
pp. 944-956 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabina Schnell ◽  
Suyeon Jo
Keyword(s):  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Structural Determinants ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Citizen Education ◽  
Disclosure Laws ◽  
Executive Agencies ◽  
Government Reforms

An increasing number of countries are adopting open government reforms, driven, in part, by the Open Government Partnership (OGP), a global effort dedicated to advancing such initiatives. Yet, there is still wide variation in openness across countries. We investigate the political, administrative, and civic factors that explain this variation, using countries’ fulfillment of OGP eligibility criteria as a proxy for minimum standards of openness. We find that countries with strong constraints on the executive and high levels of citizen education have governments that are more open. A dense network of civil society organizations is associated with more budget transparency and higher civil liberties, but not with access to information or asset disclosure laws. The results suggest that if the value of openness is to be translated in practice, it is not enough to have capable bureaucracies—countries also need informed citizens and strong oversight of executive agencies.

scholarly journals What’s in a name? A comparison of ‘open government’ definitions across seven Open Government Partnership members

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 248-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Clarke ◽  
Mary Francoli
Keyword(s):  
Open Data ◽  
The United States ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Accountability Measures ◽  
Country Comparison ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Government Reforms

No longer restricted to access to information laws and accountability measures, “open government” is now associated with a broad range of goals and functions, including public participation, open data, the improvement of public services and government efficiency. The 59 country strong Open Government Partnership (OGP) suggests that consensus on the value of open government is emerging amongst public officials. Similarly, academics have shown a renewed interest in open government as they discuss, debate and critique the meaning and role of open government reforms today. Yet, despite the diverse aims and tools characterizing contemporary open government, public officials and academics typically approach the subject as a cohesive unit of analysis, making sweeping—and generally non-empirical—claims about its implications, without accounting for the homegrown flavours that may characterize open government in practice. Simply put, the practice and study of contemporary open government suffers a lack of definitional clarity: what exactly is open government today, and how does it vary across governments? In response to these questions, this paper analyses the content of open government policy documents in seven OGP member states (Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, Netherlands, Kenya, United Kingdom, and the United States), providing the first systematic, empirically-grounded multi-country comparison of contemporary open government. The paper suggests where the term departs from and retains its original meaning, and how its definition varies across different governments

Exploring the ICT Capabilities of Civil Society in Sub Saharan Africa

2011 ◽  
pp. 207-228
Author(s):  
Joshua C. Nyirenda
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Press Freedom ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Operational Capabilities ◽  
Proxy Measure ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Masses

Civil society is argued to have been the most significant force of many forces that eradicated entrenched authoritarianism in Africa, in the early 1990s, ushering most of these countries to multi-party democracies. And yet after such accomplishment, many of these new democracies have receded to undemocratic practices. With weak economies, civil society faces many challenges in resource mobilization and in mobilizing the masses for national causes. Information communication technologies, or ICTs, are increasingly being seen as an aid to the mobilization and organization challenges of civil society. However, advanced ICT capabilities are mostly in developed countries where civil society is already strong. Using e-governance as a proxy measure for ICT capabilities for civil society, this chapter conducts an exploratory study using secondary baseline data collected by international institutions on Sub Saharan Countries. The relationship between ICT capabilities and the several civil society development indicators (press freedom, civil liberties, and various other variables) is investigated. Later, the Nation of Zambia (a country with moderate ICT capabilities in the region) is used for a qualitative case study to explore how ICT capabilities and various contextual issues influence ICT applications by civil society organizations to enhance operational capabilities such as collaboration and mobilization efforts.

scholarly journals Investigating the process of evidence-informed health policymaking in Bangladesh: a systematic review

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 469-478
Author(s):  
Madeleine Dodd ◽  
Rebecca Ivers ◽  
Anthony B Zwi ◽  
Aminur Rahman ◽  
Jagnoor Jagnoor
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Policy Formulation ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Policy Network ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health Policymaking

Abstract Over the last four decades, Bangladesh has made considerable improvements in population health, this is in part due to the use of evidence to inform policymaking. This systematic review aims to better understand critical factors that have facilitated the diffusion of scientific evidence into multiple phases of health policymaking in Bangladesh. To do this an existing policy framework designed by Shiffman and Smith in 2007, was used to extract and synthesize data from selected policy analyses. This framework was used to ensure the content, context and actors involved with evidence-informed policymaking were considered in each case where research had helped shape a health policy. The ‘PRISMA Checklist’ was employed to design pre-specified eligibility criteria for the selection of information sources, search strategy, inclusion and exclusion criteria, and process of data extraction and synthesis. Through our systematic search conducted from February to May 2017, we initially identified 1859 articles; after removal of duplicates, followed by the screening of titles, abstracts and full-texts, 24 articles were included in the analysis. Health policy issues included the following topics: maternal and child health, tobacco control, reproductive health, infectious disease control and the impact and sustainability of knowledge translation platforms. Findings suggested that research evidence that could be used to meet key targets associated with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were more likely to be considered as a political (and therefore policy) priority. Furthermore, avenues of engagement between research organizations and the government as well as collective action from civil-society organizations were important for the diffusion of evidence into policies. Through this article, it is apparent that the interface between evidence and policy formulation occurs when evidence is, disseminated by a cohesive policy-network with strong leadership and framed to deliver solutions for problems on both the domestic and global development agenda.

Breaking through barriers: the impact of organizational culture on open government reform

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 335-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erna H.J.M. Ruijer ◽  
Richard F. Huff
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Culture ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Government Reform ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Practice Gap ◽  
Government Reforms ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of organizational culture on open government reforms by developing a theoretical framework bridging the theory and practice gap. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory qualitative study consisting of a document analysis and a case study was conducted. Findings An open organizational culture is a precursor to effective open government. A network strategy as a facilitator for developing an open culture was used in one US federal agency, breaking across boundaries within the organization, creating greater symmetrical horizontal and vertical openness. Originality/value Much of the focus in both theory and practice has been on the use of technology as a vehicle to increase government openness. This study argues that a movement toward openness is beyond the technical. Organizational culture is a key to openness and may need to be changed. A networks strategy may be one way to facilitate a transformation to a more open culture.

scholarly journals A Critique of the Key Legislative Framework Guiding Civil Liberties in Zimbabwe

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 124
Author(s):  
Dr Jephias Mapuva ◽  
Loveness Muyengwa-Mapuva
Keyword(s):  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Post Colonial ◽  
Political Landscape ◽  
Ruling Elites ◽  
Legislative Framework ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Arbitrary Decision ◽  
Restrictive Legislation ◽  
Controversial Nature

The dynamic and controversial nature of Zimbabwean politics has manifested itself through several undemocratic practices, including restrictive legislation which sought to diminish participatory spaces and/or curtail civil liberties. Corruption, gross human rights violations and arbitrary decision-making processes have created a rift between citizens and the state. This has further created space for the establishment of pro-democracy civil society movements which have sought to mobilise citizens towards the restoration of democracy. The desire to cling to power by the ruling elites has seen the enactment of restrictive legislation that seeks to curtail and impinge on civil liberties and restrict the political landscape in favour of the ruling elites. Key legislative framework presented in this paper is within the areas of media and access to information, individual rights and freedoms, as well as legislation pertaining to the conduct of elections. In some cases, colonial legislation that politicians claimed to have repealed was reincarnated, as the post-colonial dispensation asserted its authority over its defenceless people.

scholarly journals Open Government and Citizen Participation: Perceptions between Civil Society Organizations and Government.

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edgar Alejandro Ruvalcaba-Gomez
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Research Question ◽  
The State ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
The Government

The concepts of citizen participation and open government (OG) are increasingly being used by politicians, government officials, and civil society organizations (CSOs). However, there are differences about how the concepts are assumed and used by different social actors. The objective of this research is to analyze the perception of citizen participation and open government from the perspectives of two fundamental sectors: CSOs and government using the State of Jalisco, Mexico as a case study. The research question is: How are citizen participation and open government perceived in the State of Jalisco by civil society organizations and the government? This research presents statistical results of a survey given to members of civil society and public officials involved in OG actions. The results show a huge gap between the perceptions of government officials and CSOs; this affects the relationship between the two sectors, which can impede development and implementation of public policies.

Citizen Education and Technology

2015 ◽  
pp. 380-392
Author(s):  
Lesley S. J. Farmer
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environments ◽  
Interactive Learning ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Education Technology ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Citizen Education ◽  
Digital Society ◽  
Education And Technology

Technology plays a central role in current citizen education. Technology also impacts the underlying concept of citizenship since it now has to consider the digital society. This chapter examines the elements of citizen education and the factors needed to be in place for technology to facilitate citizen education. While technology affords access to information more efficiently than ever before, it also requires additional skills. For technology to play out its role effectively, educators need to design instruction for citizen curriculum that offers technology-enhanced interactive learning and socially rich learning environments. Several examples of good practice of incorporating technology into citizen education conclude the chapter.

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