As follow- through to the series of Good Governance Dialogues, an Innovative Solutions for Open Government Partnership (ISOGP) conducted in the past two years, the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP), the umbrella organizations of all the leagues and elected officials in the country, in partnership with Microsoft Philippines, hosted the ISOGP Learning event at Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria, Quezon City last March 1, 2016. This is in continuation of the advocacy for good local governance through the pursuit of Open Government Partnership (OGP) initiatives. Approximately sixty (60) participants including local government units and other stakeholders attended the dinner event.
Currently, the Philippines is officially into the implementation of the Third Country Action Plan (2015-2017) in its continuing commitment to the Open Government Partnership (OGP). Hence, ULAP is pursuing the local government agenda under the advocacy banner of #ParaSaBayan: Pagtataguyod ng Makabuluhang Adhikain ng Pamamahalang Lokal. One of the key tracks of the advocacy is strengthening the implementation of the OGP principles of inclusive governance, transparency, and accountability in subnational/local levels.
One of the key aspects to achieve the OGP principle is through technology. Technology has been identified as a helpful tool for government to be able to deliver effective and efficient public service. It also plays an important role in the OGP story. With people getting more connected through technology, there has been a growing demand for government to be more transparent and accountable through increased access to information which provides citizens a way to access and feedback on plans, spending and policy-making.
In the event, various innovative solutions in the field of education, disaster, data management, health and others were presented by national government agencies and private sector partners. One of the presentations include the introduction of the #ParaSaBayan Portal website, which aims to link LGUs to technology solution-providers.
Meanwhile, the One Device One Solution (ODOS) project, a joint endeavor of ULAP, DILG and Microsoft to provide innovative and technology-based solutions to LGUs that will help them in their attainment of the Seal of Good Local Governance and Open Government Partnership commitments was also introduced. It involves procurement of a cheaper and useful device, preferably a mobile tablet through the DBM Procurement System, that will house a variety of applications that will aid LGUs in coming up with fast and efficient solutions. These applications are mostly free but may require for each LGU to configure with project partners and developers. Licensing of each application will depend on the developer agreement.
This event is one of the engagements of the Innovative Technologies for Open Government Partnership (ITOGP) Coalition where ULAP and Microsoft Philippines are lead conveners. This coalition was convened during the ISOGP Coalition in February 2015 to support the implementation of innovative technology solutions for LGUs in aid of good local governance.