Responsive Government

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Citizen-Generated Data puts power in the citizens’ hands 

Traditionally, data collection initiatives have often been top-down, with external organizations setting the agenda and citizens responding reactively. In the traditional model, institutions play a central role in defining what data is collected and how it is collected. Citizens are seen as respondents, participating in data collection exercises initiated by others. While this approach is…

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The Power of Local Engagement: Reflections from the Global Goals for Local Impact Project

In 2015, we did some work to try and see what citizens care about enough to act and be engaged with the government. We had a simple goal – to stimulate active citizenship and foster responsive government using data to aid communities to provide input into government activities. This project showed us that citizens cared…

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Nandi County wins 2023 Open Government Award!

Nandi County is again in the spotlight, basking in the glory of its remarkable achievements. On September 6th, Nandi County received an impressive win for the 2023 Open Government Award in the Digital Technologies category for Africa and the Middle East. This award, warmly received by the Deputy Governor, Dr Yulita Mitei, clearly demonstrates their…

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A Decade of Devolution & The Pursuit of Transformation

This week, we join counties in celebrating a decade of devolution – ten years since Kenya’s 47 counties came into being. The counties were established under the 2010 Constitution, but were actualised after the 2013 general elections. At those elections, Kenyans elected 47 new governors for the first time.  Scenes from the 2023 Devolution Conference…

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Building a data-driven culture to #MakeNairobiWork

Goal 17 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) explicitly recognizes the importance of data in strengthening the means of implementation of the global partnership for sustainable development. It highlights the need to improve the availability of high-quality, timely, and reliable data. The availability of real-time data helps governments make more informed decisions that are based…

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The Governors Baraza

The Governors Baraza, a high-level breakfast meeting that brought together Governors, civil society organisations and development partners was co-organized by the Open Institute, The SDGs Kenya Forum and Baraza Media Lab. The Governors Baraza's ultimate goal is to enable CSOs to provide support, build relationships and to advocate for the governors to adopt good practices from the onset.

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We are ten! Here are our 10 lessons in 10 years

This week, we celebrate ten years since our founders started on a journey towards an open society that is managed by informed, fact-driven citizens. Here’s a fun factoid: our original name was going to be lengthy – The African Centre for Open Governance and Open Data (ACOGOD). As we start thinking about things we are…

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We’ve officially handed over the Nandi Data Desk!

After the successful launch of the Nandi Data Desk, we were back at it, working together with Nandi’s county leaders to prepare their data for public view. Through our engagement, the team from Nandi were well trained to manage the system. With the simple accessible web application, the Nandi data desk provides a responsive and seamless data upload process. The engagements culminated in the successful handing over of the system to the technical team, who are well equipped to manage the County Data Desk.

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