During the Closing Plenary of the 2023 Open Government Partnership (OGP) Global Summit in Tallinn, Estonia, USAID Administrator Samantha Power announced a new five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between USAID and OGP that lays out sustained strategic engagement along six priority lines: anti-corruption, digital democracy, gender and inclusive development, open justice, democracy delivers/windows of opportunity contexts, and transparent and accountable debt management.
Additionally, Administrator Power announced a new three-year, up to $3.25 million grant aimed at expanding and enhancing OGP implementation at the country level, and accelerating action against corruption. The deepened partnership between USAID and OGP, evidenced in the new MoU and grant, will be instrumental in addressing some of the biggest challenges democracies face today, including a rise in transnational and strategic corruption, democratic backsliding, and mis- and dis-information.
USAID knows that open and transparent governments deliver better outcomes for citizens around the world and are essential to ensuring that public resources are used in ways that advance the public interest and promote inclusive and democratic development. OGP represents a powerful model of how governments and civil society can work together to build resilient and responsive democracies.
For these reasons, USAID has provided critical support to OGP implementation since 2011, including through bilateral efforts to advance partner countries’ commitments, strengthening civil society engagement and advocacy, designing open data technology tools, and integrating OGP commitments into work across sectors, including health and education. USAID has also provided support to the OGP Secretariat since 2016.
USAID’s new up to $3.25 million grant will expand and enhance OGP implementation at the country level; feed into global efforts led by the United States to advance the priorities of the Summit for Democracy’s Financial Transparency and Integrity (FTI) Cohort—including by advancing beneficial ownership transparency and accountable public procurement, and tackling professional service providers that enable corruption; ensure effective action and follow-up to country commitments made at the Summits for Democracy; and galvanize bold, multi-stakeholder open government reform.
The MOU creates a strategic framework for long-term engagement, cooperation, and collaboration between USAID and OGP at the global, regional, and country levels. Through its deepened and strategic partnership, USAID and OGP will spur another generation of reforms aimed at making government more accessible, accountable, and responsive to all citizens.
