Open Government in the Arab Region

Implementing open government is not an easy task, as it requires changes to long-standing systems, changes in the way government thinks and changes in the way citizens perceive their responsibility and role in governance. To aid in the implementation of open government in the Arab region, ESCWA developed an open government framework. Build on existing systems, this four-phased model, can be used by government institutions, departments, and ministries to systematically introduce and develop open government. The phases are openness, participation, collaboration and involvement. To successfully achieve such implementation, it is necessary to build the capacity of government decision-makers and employees that can drive the development and innovative services, products, programmes, processes and procedures to bring about open government.

The main objective of the workshop was to build the capacity of participants on open government, based on the four phased ESCWA framework. I presented the The Four Phased ESCWA Framework on Open Government. 

The capacity building provided participants with knowledge on options, tools and actions needed to develop and implement open government initiatives in the Arab region. The workshop included sessions on open data, participation, collaboration and engagement.