REOPENED: Two calls for proposals: Research consultancy for open contracting

REOPENED: Two calls for proposals: Research consultancy for open contracting March 21, 2019 Are you interested in doing research? Do you believe in the importance of transparent data? And, do you want to improve public procurement worldwide? Here is your chance to join Hivos’ Open Contracting program. Open contracting is a process in which a […]

The power of journalism

Three years ago, a young but daring media organization in Guatemala, Laboratorio de Medios, decided to focus its work in two areas: accountability and municipalities. Everyone thought they were crazy—it was not only a seemingly very unattractive subject matter for average audiences, but it also presented a field full of obstacles (and risks). Opacity, few databases available, and government officials not used to supporting journalists or other social actors who try to build bridges between citizens and public institutions.But they kept true to their goal and continued shaping their project: OjoConMiPisto, a native digital media that has nowadays become a reference and inspiration to journalism students all over the country, as well as among acclaimed communications professionals throughout all of Latin America.

How data revealed more than just nepotism in the Philippines

The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism meets Open Contracting. A story of how the PCIJ, a Hivos Open Contracting partner since 2017, used the resources it had at hand - together with an open contracting lens - to unravel the tangled web of government contracts and misuse of taxpayer money in the Philippines.

International Open Data Day 2019 is upon us: Let’s celebrate!

International Open Data Day 2019 is upon us: Let’s celebrate! February 28, 2019 Open Data Day (ODD) 2019 is right around the corner, on Saturday, 2 March 2019!  Don’t know what it is? ODD is an annual celebration of open data all over the world. For the 9th time in history, groups from around the […]

Call for Proposals: Production of Open Contracting Videos

Call for Proposals: Production of Open Contracting Videos The Open Up Contracting program is seeking a video production company that can produce 3 high quality videos, no more than 2 minutes per video. The videos will focus on 3 cases in 3 different regions where the program takes place: Latin America, Southeast Asia and Africa, as well as 3 different areas of work in the program.

Call for Proposals: Grants for piloting investigative partnerships

Call for Proposals: Grants for piloting investigative partnerships February 26, 2019 Background Over the last decade civil society organizations in the field of transparency, civic engagement and accountability are increasingly using data and technology for analysis, engagement and to create evidence for advocacy. Likewise, investigative journalists are increasingly using data for investigations to back up […]

Communique issued at end of ‘People Summit’

A number of Indonesian and international civil society organizations have held a "People Summit on Alternative Development” meeting in response to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Meeting, held from Oct. 12 to 14 in Bali. The People Summit aimed to consolidate voices of national and international civil society in order to determine patterns of development that are useful for the community. A direct result from the People Summit, was a communique signed by multiple civil society organisations. Read the full text of the communique in the article.

Open Up Contracting at Regional Meeting in Seoul, South Korea

The Government of the Republic of Korea will host the Open Government Partnership Regional Meeting in Seoul, South Korea on November 5-6, 2018. Open contracting is high on the agenda and the Open Up Contracting program will be co-hosting a session. Are you interested to learn more about citizen engagement and data use within the open contracting framework? Join our session on 6 November!

Nearly 400,000 contracts from UN, World Bank and NATO made public

Nearly 400,000 contracts from UN, World Bank and NATO made public October 25, 2018 For the first time, it has become visible which countries benefit the most from multilateral organizations such as the United Nations, NATO and the World Bank. Remarkable cash flows have become public and available for research through the website OpenMultilaterals.org. Through […]

Data for good!

Data for good! October 18, 2018 Reflections from the International Open Data Conference Blog by Sally Akinyi, October 18, 2018   The future is open! This was the main message at the 4th International Open Data Conference. On 27- 28 September 2018, 1500 participants from the data community came together in Buenos Aires. Participants from […]