Te ahunga mai o te Mahere Mahi Tuawhā | Our Story
Developing the Fourth National Action Plan
The Fourth National Action Plan was developed by the Multi-stakeholder Forum (MSF), consisting of the EAP and officials from the Commission’s open government partnership team. The development of the Fourth National Action Plan took place over three years due to time frames being formally extended as a result of COVID-19.
Public consultation and engagement on potential commitments was a core part of the development of the Plan and is discussed below. Following significant public workshops and engagement with civil society representatives in 2020 and 2021, in October 2021 the Minister for the Public Service identified four key themes for the Plan. Public workshops were then held on these themes and following this EAP, civil society organisations and officials met to discuss progress on fledging commitments. In November 2022 Cabinet agreed to the publication of the draft Plan for final public comment.
Public consultation and engagement on potential commitments was a core part of the development of the Plan and is discussed below. Following significant public workshops and engagement with civil society representatives in 2020 and 2021, in October 2021 the Minister for the Public Service identified four key themes for the Plan. Public workshops were then held on these themes and following this EAP, civil society organisations and officials met to discuss progress on fledging commitments. In November 2022 Cabinet agreed to the publication of the draft Plan for final public comment.
Outreach and Process Improvements
Effective public engagement is essential to capture the community’s views and ideas for the Plan. Process improvements to facilitate greater participation in developing this Plan involved significantly more outreach to gather ideas. In 2019-21, officials travelled to several locations around the country to conduct public meetings and workshops. This engagement was supplemented by an online, public platform, launched in early 2021. The platform used deliberative questions, developed to generate ideas and suggestions from the public about ‘challenges for a public conversation on how we advance active citizenship, partnership, responsiveness and transparency of government’.
The greater public outreach resulted in approximately 1500 ideas being gathered for the Plan. After being assessed to determine whether ideas were already being actioned by government, the remaining ideas were collated under the following key themes selected by the Minister as Plan priorities:
- Public participation
- Information to support financial accountability
- Access to, and usability of, public information
- Government use of data and personal information.
Running public workshops when New Zealand was experiencing high numbers of COVID-19 cases meant workshops to develop commitments had to be held online for the first time. The Commission employed an independent facilitator with expertise in online tools to assist. Preparation included: developing detailed assessment criteria for potential commitments; designing a new workshop process; and creating collateral for workshop participants. The EAP worked with officials on adapting the design of the workshop process mid-way, to improve the quality of participation and participants’ experience.
During and outside of the workshops, the MSF, officials, and members of the public and civil society representatives worked collaboratively, over several months, to develop potential fledgling commitments and identify priorities. Participants worked in large and small groups, during and after four online workshops in April-May 2022. A further two public meetings in July 2022 were held to discuss the draft commitments. Participants continued to provide feedback on potential commitments after these workshops, and officials continued to discuss the commitments with key stakeholders to investigate potential sponsorship for some of the commitments.
Te Tiriti o Waitangi
A significant process matter discussed by officials, the EAP, and members of civil society during the Plan’s development was the appropriate recognition of Te Tiriti. In particular, the appropriate way to apply a Te Tiriti lens to OGP work. The discussion led to Te Puni Kōkiri officials presenting to officials, the EAP and civil society representatives on a draft framework developed for applying Te Tiriti for OGP initiatives. The framework was incorporated into the detailed assessment criteria, and templates used by workshop participants in commitment development. Te Tiriti o Waitangi will also be reflected in the delivery of the commitments by the Agency Leads.