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29!July!2013!!Ban!Ki0Moon!!Secretary0General!United!Nations!New!York,!NY!!Dear!Secretary0General,!!Re:$Open$Government$and$the$Post32015$Development$Framework$!As!members!of!the!Steering!Committee!of!the!Open!Government!Partnership!(OGP),!which!has!60!participating!countries,!we!are!delighted!that!the!final!report!of!the!High!Level!Panel!of!Eminent!Persons!(HLPEP)!on!the!Post02015!Development!Agenda!has!placed!strong!emphasis!on!transparency,!participation!and!accountability.0!We!believe!this!is!critical!to!ensure!that!the!post02015!development!framework!meets!public!aspirations!and!promotes!tangible,!sustainable!results.!!!Since!the!Millennium!Development!Goals!were!crafted,!the!world!has!changed!dramatically.!So,!too,!has!our!understanding!of!what!drives!global!development.!To!achieve!sustainable!growth,!development!and!prosperity!for!all,!we!need!to!do!more!than!allocate!additional!resources!or!adopt!specific!policies.!We!need!strong!institutions!and!governments!that!are!more!open!and!accountable!to!citizens.!We!commend!the!HLPEP!report!for!recognizing!this!insight.!!!Across!the!world,!a!broad!movement!for!open!government!is!gathering!steam.!Citizens!are!demanding!greater!transparency!and!a!more!active!role!in!the!policy!process.!The!G8!countries!have!just!made!strong!commitments!to!ending!tax!evasion!and!opening!up!public!data.!In!addition,!a!growing!number!of!rich!and!developing!country!governments!are!adapting!the!way!they!do!business,!recognizing!that!greater!transparency!and!participation!leads!to!more!effective,!efficient,!and!equitable!management!of!scarce!public!resources,!and!to!sustainable!economic,!social,!and!environmental!development.!In!countries!around!the!world!these!efforts!are!reinforcing!00!and!in!some!cases!transforming!00!the!relationship!between!citizens!and!government.!!OGP!is!a!unique!collaboration!between!civil!society!and!governments,!inspired!by!this!global!movement.!It!brings!together!countries!that!seek!to!respond!in!very!practical!and!innovative!ways!to!the!growing!public!demand!for!more!openness!and!accountability.!Each!country!works!with!local!civil!society!actors!to!develop!concrete!commitments!to!promote!transparency,!empower!citizens,!fight!against!corruption,!and!harness!new!technologies!to!strengthen!

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governance.!Our!60!participating!countries!and!hundreds!of!associated!civil!society!organizations,!covering!all!continents!and0nearly!30%!of!the!world’s!population,!have!made!over!300!specific!open!government!commitments.!!!As!we!are!aware!that!the!UN!has!already!started!gathering!inputs!to!come!up!with!a!post02015!development!framework,!of!which!the!HLPEP!Report!is!just!one,!we,!the!members!of!the!OGP!Steering!Committee,!have!two!recommendations!to!ensure!that!the!post02015!development!framework!has!the!greatest!possible!impact!in!driving!results:!!First,!we!urge!you!to!ensure!that!the!commitment!to!transparency,!participation!and!accountability!remains!at!the!heart!of!the!final!post02015!development!framework!design!through!simple,!compelling!and!measurable!goals!and!targets.!This!is!by!far!the!best!way!to!ensure!that!governments!deliver!on!their!promises,!and!that!citizens!are!invested!and!involved!in!the!process.!This!commitment,!in!our!view,!is!well!reflected!in!the!HLPEP!Report,!which!we!believe!could!inspire!and!be!a!strong!reference!for!the!new!development!framework.!It!is!also!crucial!that!accountability!and!citizen!participation!is!built!into!the!implementation!and!monitoring!mechanisms!of!the!framework,!so!that!there!are!opportunities!for!citizens!to!remain!involved!in!the!process!and!express!their!concerns!if!necessary.!!!!Second,!the!post02015!development!framework!should!include!a!carefully!selected!set!of!indicators!and!a!robust!monitoring!framework!that!builds!on!the!‘data!revolution’!called!for!by!the!HLPEP!report.!This!will!require!that!all!governments!publish!timely!and!comprehensive!information!on!the!public!resources!they!invest!in!pursuing!each!of!the!goals,!as!well!as!the!results!they!achieve.!This!information!needs!to!be!publicly!available!in!its!most!disaggregated!form,!so!that,!for!example,!parents!can!see!if!funds!reach!schools!and!children!are!learning;!patients!can!check!if!medicines!are!available!at!clinics!and!health!outcomes!improving;!and!people!can!know!whether!fair!taxes!are!paid!by!and!collected!from!extractive!industries.!This!will!ensure!that!governments!have!the!information!they!need!to!make!good!decisions!and!monitor!implementation,!and!that!citizens!have!the!ability!to!influence!spending!priorities!and!track!progress.!!!Such!an!approach!in!setting!up!the!new!development!framework!will!require!broad!political!support!from!a!wide!range!of!countries!and!civil!society!organizations.!OGP!stands!ready!to!offer!strong!support!for!these!recommendations!by!working!with!you!to!develop!specific!open!government!targets,!indicators!and!strategies,!and!by!helping!to!galvanize!public!backing!for!them.!!!!!!

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We!attach!an!illustrative!set!of!examples!of!open!government!in!action!for!your!reference.!!!!Thank!you!for!your!kind!consideration.!!Sincerely,!!

The$Steering$Committee$of$the$Open$Government$Partnership$!

Co3Chairs$!

Hon.!Francis!Maude!Government!of!The!United!Kingdom!

!Hon.!Kuntoro!Mangkusubroto!Government!of!Indonesia!

!!Government$Representatives$

!

Warren!Krafchik!International!Budget!Partnership!

!Rakesh!Rajani!Twaweza$

$Civil$Society$Representatives$

Government!of!Brazil!

Maryati!Abdullah!Publish!What!You!Pay!0!Indonesia

!Government!of!!

Mexico!!

Government!of!Norway!

!Government!of!!The!Philippines!

!Government!of!South!Africa!

!Government!of!!

Tanzania!!

!Veronica!Cretu!

CMB!Training!Center!!

Nikhil!Dey!Mazdoor!Kisan!Shakti!Sangathan!

!Alejandro!Gonzalez!

Gestion!Social!y!Cooperacion!!

Suneeta!Kaimal!Revenue!Watch!Institute!

!Iara!Pietricovsky!

Instituto!de!Estudos!Socioeconomicos

Government!of!The!United!States!

! !

Martin!Tisne!Transparency!&!Accountability!Initiative!

$

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$Participating$countries$of$the$Open$Government$Partnership:$!Africa$ Americas$ Asia$&$Oceania$ Europe$Ghana! Argentina! Australia! Albania!Liberia! Brazil! Azerbaijan! Armenia!Kenya! Canada! Indonesia! Bulgaria!Malawi! Chile! Israel! Croatia!South!Africa! Colombia! Jordan! Czech!Republic!Tanzania! Costa!Rica! Mongolia! Denmark!! Dominican!Republic! Philippines! Estonia!!! El!Salvador! South!Korea! Finland!!! Guatemala! Turkey! Georgia!!! Honduras! !! Greece!!! Mexico! !! Hungary!!! Peru! !! Ireland!!! Panama! ! Italy!! Paraguay! !! Latvia!!! Trinidad!&!Tobago! !! Lithuania!!! United!States! !! Macedonia!!! Uruguay! !! Malta!!! ! !! Moldova!!! !! !! Montenegro!!! !! !! Netherlands!!! !! !! Norway!!! !! !! Romania!!! !! !! Serbia!!! !! !! Slovak!Republic!!! !! !! Spain!!! !! !! Sweden!!! !! !! Ukraine!!! ! !! United!Kingdom!$$$

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Illustrative$Examples$of$Open$Government$$Transparency,$Participation$and$Accountability$Making$a$Difference$$A!growing!body!of!evidence!shows!that!open!government!helps!to!improve!development!outcomes,!demonstrating!that!greater!citizen!access!to!information!and!participation!opportunities!can!make!a!real!difference!to!people’s!lives.!Examples!include:!

• In!India,!CSOs!are!making!budget!information!accessible!to!the!poor!by!painting!it!on!village!walls.!In!the!state!of!Andhra!Pradesh!alone,!citizen!audits!have!uncovered!over!$25!million!in!fraud!and!theft,!a!fifth!of!which!has!been!recovered.!These!audits!have!proven!so!useful!that!the!Controller!and!Auditor!General!have!called!for!their!use!across!all!of!India.!

• In!South!Africa,!a!broad!civil!society!coalition!known!as!the!Treatment!Action!Campaign!used!available!government!data!and!budget!analysis!to!show!courts!that!the!government!could!afford!to!provide!ARV!medication!to!all!HIV0positive!South!Africans.!Under!a!subsequent!court!judgment,!the!government!increased!spending!on!HIV/AIDS!treatments!by!$6bn!and!provided!access!to!life0saving!ARVs!to!another!1.6!million!people.!

• In!2009,!Brazil!recorded!a!reduction!of!27%!in!spending!made!with!federal!government!corporate!cards!used!by!government!officials!for!public!acquisitions.!The!savings!were!a!result!of!a!new!policy!that!combined!integrity!measures!and!full!transparency!on!the!acquisitions!made!with!that!tool.!Any!citizen!can!follow!up!on!the!spending!of!each!cardholder!using!the!Brazilian!Transparency!Portal.!

• In!Nigeria!in!2008,!Finance!Minister!Ngozi!Okonjo0Iweala!stated!that!revenue!transparency!helped!to!boost!Nigeria’s!credit!rating!and!to!increase!foreign!direct!investment!by!$6!billion!a!year!in!the!oil!sector!and!$3!billion!a!year!in!the!non0oil!sector.!More!recently,!Nigeria’s!government!estimated!that!revenue!transparency!laws!and!an!end!to!tax!loopholes!save!the!country!about!$780m!a!year.!!

• Kenya!became!Africa’s!first!country!to!digitize!its!information!and!make!hundreds!of!data!sets!available!–!including!information!on!budgets,!health!care,!and!education.!Private!and!non0profit!Institutions!are!creating!a!range!of!applications!to!help!people!access,!manage,!and!comment!on!government!information.!!

• Across!the!European!Union!(EU),!member!countries!could!generate!a!total!€40!billion!(USD!$48.7!billion)!a!year!in!economic!gains!by!making!data!more!publicly!available,!according!to!a!recent!European!Commission!Communication!on!Open!Data.!