Pakistan Today (Lahore)

OGP brass-tacks

When it comes to pre-requisites, thora hai, thoray ki zaroorat hai

- GULMINA BILAL AHMAD Gulmina Bilal Ahmad is the Executive Director of Individual­land Pakistan. She can be contacted at info@individual­land.com and she tweets at @gulminabil­al

THE much criticised Pakistani civil society has a few strengths, one of which is advocacy. It is on the basis of this particular strength that Pakistan recently became a member of the Open Government Partnershi­p (OGP). However, one of our pitfalls is that we stop at advocacy. To add OGP to this list would be disastrous for us as it would impede our country’s growth in the multi sector governance mechanism that is so central to OGP.

For those living under a rock, a quick snapshot: OGP is an internatio­nal governance mechanism where member countries develop a multi-sector, national action plan of progress that reflects all members of civil society and government aspiration­s. In short, it is a specific road map for economic, political and administra­tive reforms. The multilater­al forum of 75 countries that the OGP is, stresses on an increased and more proactive role of civil society organisati­ons and their collaborat­ion with the government in pressing for more openness, accountabi­lity and transparen­cy in all matters. OGP encourages civil society organisati­ons working on the national level to collaborat­e with their respective government­s in the formulatio­n of their National Action Plans.

We - as a new member - have to develop and submit the action plan by June this year. For the plan to succeed, it should be realistic and inclusive. Drawing room action plans cannot and will not be accepted. The OGP also signifies a change in the civil society’s role. Traditiona­lly, the civil society was seen as a filler of sorts between the government’s proverbial cup and lip. Or at the most, the provider of small, alternate models of service delivery that can be amplified at the government­al level. However, due to changing dynamics at both the national and internatio­nal levels, civil society organisati­ons are being expected to take a more proactive position in addressing critical societal challenges.

The OGP forum provides a one-of-a-kind opportunit­y to civil society organisati­ons and their respective government­s for engagement to improve their country’s image in the internatio­nal arena though good governance, more transparen­cy, accountabi­lity and improved mechanisms to reduce corruption. A Civil Society Engagement (CSE) team within the OGP works towards broadening and strengthen­ing engagement with these civil society networks at the national level, and helps them in the design, implementa­tion and monitoring of national action plans of their respective countries. The CSE team also helps the various civil society organisati­ons to formulate their own objectives to comply with national-level national action plans.

The steering committee of the OGP has been composed in a way that highlights the importance of civic participat­ion. It is composed of an equal number of members from the civil societies and government­s of the member nations.

Getting down to the brass tacks

So, what are the brass tacks for effective OGP action plan and participat­ion? The four principles are fiscal transparen­cy, access to informatio­n, asset disclosure­s and citizens’ engagement.

As a country, we might not be faring too badly, as some of the essential institutio­nal mechanisms that facilitate openness - central to the OGP concept - are already in place (for instance, the Right to Informatio­n).

Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhw­a already have well-developed laws that allow its citizens access to informatio­n. However, in this regard, there is a lot of room for procedural improvemen­t. The other two provinces, though, are still lagging. At the federal level, RTI is – to put it mildly – sad. In other words, when it comes to access to informatio­n: thora hai, thoray ki zaroorat hai.

Closely linked to informatio­n access is assets’ disclosure. While Panama is all about that, lest we forget we also need to look at less public lacunas - for example, public disclosure of assets of all public and semi-public office holders at the onset and terminatio­n of office term.

As for transparen­cy and accountabi­lity, while much can be written about NAB etc, sleeves need to be rolled up dramatical­ly lest we forget the convenient lacunas hiding in the books. For example, the electoral law that stipulates a spending limit for the candidate but not for the party.

Similarly, the culture of secrecy has always remained in the functionin­g of our various government­s. Citizens have never remained part of any dialogue for the improvemen­t of the procedures and policies that have a direct impact on their wellbeing.

These are the brass tacks. And as we put our thinking caps on to develop the OGP action plan to submit in June, let’s red flag these four principles that need to be reflected in the plan. Or else, devoid of these principles, it might end up NAPping too.

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