Kenya is set to develop its first-ever State of Openness Report through a partnership between the Commission on Administrative Justice (Office of the Ombudsman) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), marking a major step towards strengthening transparency, accountability and access to information in the public sector.
The initiative was unveiled during multi-stakeholder consultations held at State House and is expected to establish a data-driven framework for assessing how government institutions comply with the Access to Information Act and Kenya’s broader open governance commitments.
New framework to measure transparency
The State of Openness Report will introduce standardized tools to evaluate transparency and accountability across ministries, state agencies and county governments.
UNODC Deputy Regional Representative for Eastern Africa Koen Marquering said the report will provide an objective mechanism for measuring compliance with access-to-information obligations while identifying areas requiring improvement.
“This work is a cornerstone of a more transparent and accountable public service,” Marquering said.
He noted that the assessment framework will use standardized data collection methods and cross-agency evaluations to monitor how public institutions implement transparency laws and governance commitments.
Supporting Kenya’s open government agenda
The initiative forms part of Kenya’s commitments under the Open Government Partnership (OGP), which seeks to strengthen transparency, accountability and citizen participation in governance.
It also complements government plans to integrate the Ombudsman’s transparency and access-to-information indicators into the annual performance contracts of Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries.
Officials believe the move will strengthen accountability by making openness and access to information key performance indicators for senior government officials.
Digital platforms to improve public access
The initiative will also support the rollout of digital transparency platforms aimed at making government information more accessible to the public.
Among the planned platforms are the Publish What You Borrow portal, which will provide information on government borrowing and public debt, and the Jihusishe citizen engagement application, designed to improve public participation and access to budget implementation information.
The digital platforms are expected to make it easier for citizens to monitor government activities and enhance public oversight.
Civil society to help shape the report
Civil society organisations, including Mzalendo Trust and ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa, are participating in the consultations under the Open Government Partnership’s co-creation framework.
Their involvement will help shape the report’s methodology, data collection process and monitoring framework.
Once completed, the State of Openness Report is expected to guide future governance reforms, strengthen implementation of the Access to Information Act and improve transparency and accountability across Kenya’s public institutions.
