Benin launches first open government action plan process
Eighteen months after joining the Open Government Partnership (OGP), Benin has taken a decisive step toward enhancing governance transparency. From July 27 to 31, a five-day national workshop was held in Cotonou to engage key stakeholders in the principles of open governance. The primary goal? To lay the groundwork for the country’s first-ever National Action Plan under the OGP framework.
Stakeholder collaboration drives reform agenda
The workshop brought together a diverse group of participants, including government officials, representatives from state institutions, civil society organizations, the private sector, technical and financial partners, and media professionals. The sessions were designed to deepen understanding of OGP requirements and foster a collaborative approach to drafting the country’s commitments under the initiative.
Victorin Honvoh, Chief of Staff at the Ministry of Budget and Public Service, opened the event by framing Benin’s OGP membership as a natural extension of ongoing reforms. He emphasized transparency, accountability, access to information, anti-corruption measures, and citizen participation as core priorities. Honvoh stressed that the success of this initiative hinges on sustained dialogue between public institutions and non-state actors, urging participants to propose concrete measures and embrace the principles of open governance.
From dialogue to actionable commitments
Mireille Hortense Codjovi, Director of the Open Budget Unit and National Focal Point for the OGP, highlighted the workshop as a precursor to nationwide consultations. These consultations, planned across all twelve departments of Benin, aim to gather public priorities, which will then be analyzed, prioritized, and integrated into the draft National Action Plan.
The process is supported by international partners, including Expertise France’s PAGOF2 program, GIZ, Swiss Cooperation, UNICEF, and the European Union, underscoring the collaborative nature of Benin’s governance reforms.
Building on existing transparency gains
Jean-Pierre Degue, Vice President of the Technical Committee of the OGP, noted that Benin already boasts achievements in budget transparency and citizen participation. The challenge now lies in translating these gains into measurable commitments within the OGP framework. He emphasized the partnership’s three pillars: citizen participation, transparency, and accountability, and praised the constructive dialogue between government and civil society as a strong foundation for progress.
International expert Gustavo Pérez Ara reinforced this perspective, presenting the OGP standards and encouraging participants to integrate open governance principles into institutional practices. Chabi Kassim Taba, Advisor to the Court of Auditors, chaired the sessions, guiding discussions on operationalizing these principles within public institutions.
The workshop’s recommendations, combined with insights from the upcoming departmental consultations, will shape the final draft of Benin’s first National Action Plan under the OGP. This plan will outline the country’s concrete commitments to enhancing governance transparency and citizen engagement.
