Department of Budget and Management Secretary and Philippine Open Government Partnership (PH-OGP) Chairperson Amenah F. Pangandaman was announced as a new member of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Steering Committee on May 30, 2024.
This is the second time that the Philippines will hold a seat in the OGP Steering Committee since it founded the Partnership in 2011, together with seven other countries. Prior to this, the Philippines held a special one-year term from 2014 to 2015.
The OGP is a multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance.
“I am very grateful to be given this opportunity to show the world that the Philippines is not only a great example but a bastion of open government. Rest assured that I will continue to use my voice and my influence, especially through this platform, to mainstream open government globally and domestically, strengthen alliances and partnerships in our community of nations, and most importantly, realize action-oriented commitments in opening governments to the people,” Secretary Pangandaman said.
The Budget Secretary will join representatives from Brazil, Estonia, Morocco, and the United Kingdom, who have likewise secured seats in the Steering Committee and will begin their three-year term on October 1, 2024.
Consisting of 22 members, with equal representation between governments and civil society, the Steering Committee develops, promotes, and advances the OGP’s strategic direction. As advocates for the Partnership, members also play a crucial role in promoting collective action on key thematic issues and other OGP priorities through active participation in high-level OGP events.
A champion of open government in the Administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., Sec. Mina has been instrumental in the historic institutionalization of the PH-OGP through the issuance of Executive Order No. 31, and in bringing one of the biggest delegations to the 2023 OGP Global Summit held in Tallinn, Estonia.
She has also led various initiatives promoting the localization of open government in the country including “OGPinas!”, an open government nationwide advocacy campaign that has already engaged 1,500 Filipinos in nine provinces in just seven months. The Support and Assistance Fund to Participatory Budgeting, meanwhile, will provide 75 municipalities with access to safely managed and resilient water supply through a participatory process involving local Civil Society Organizations.
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