Improving Public Services through Open Government
In 2015, OGP is asking countries to showcase how open government initiatives have resulted in concrete improvements in the delivery of public services, e.g. economic welfare programs, health care, education, water, roads, public safety etc. OGP has selected this theme for 2015 in recognition of the fact that public services are the most common interface between citizens and the government, and that governments should ensure transparency, accountability and responsiveness in their design and delivery. Good quality and effective public services respond to the needs of people, including vulnerable groups, and form the foundation of inclusive development. OGP also believes that this theme is a key component of achieving the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals.
Each OGP participating country* is eligible to submit one application to the 2015 Open Government Awards. A government agency in each country will be responsible for submitting the country's application. Governments are strongly encouraged to submit a joint application with one or more civil society partners. Given the theme of improving public services, OGP will also recognize and encourage the submission of initiatives that were led by subnational (vs. national) governments. Subnational governments (cities, states, provinces etc) are generally the closest governing authority to citizens and play a key role in the delivery of public services. The national government will be required to consult with civil society to select the most compelling initiative to be submitted as the country's entry for the 2015 Awards. *See exceptions
Each registered team must describe how it chose an initiative to be considered for the theme of Improving Public Services. This will be an internal exercise where the government team must consult with civil society partners in nominating the best initiative to put forward for the competition.
Each team must submit a three-part application, including The TEAM, The INITIATIVE and The PITCH. These sections ask the team to identify the staff responsible for the initiative, as well as any partners, describe the merits of the initiative, and provide evidence of results.
Each complete application will be scored using a common rubric. All scores will be normalized to ensure that - no matter which judges are assigned - every applicant will be treated fairly. Judges' scores and comments will be compiled so that teams can receive valuable feedback. To ensure a transparent process, the rubric is available for you to review even before you have registered.
Recognizing that good ideas come from everywhere, the Open Government Awards seek to showcase a diverse group of initiatives from around the world. Our judges understand that the boldness of each initiative should be assessed relative to the conditions in each country, and that each country will have unique experiences to share given the challenges they face. With this in mind, in 2015, OGP will honor three overall WINNERS, four REGIONAL CHAMPIONS and one country in a SPECIAL RECOGNITION category.