Kick-off meetings on project “using open data to support budget transparency at district level”
Budget transparency —the public availability of comprehensive and timely information about public finances —is a key precondition for promoting an informed public dialogue around policy priorities and ensuring government accountability. Public access to sufficient budget information provides needed information to citizens and civil society groups about how governments collect and spend revenues, which enables them to monitor budgets and advocate in decision-making processes.
With the aim to address the issue of opaque commune/Sangkat budgets, Open Development Cambodia and its partners STAR Kampuchea will implement three actions:
- Community network groups and CSOs will track the district funds from the allocation of the national budget and its own-produced revenues;
- Verify whether investment and development plans actually respond to the real needs of the communities;
- Monitor the budget spending of local administrations and ensure it meets the transparency and accountability standards, all seeking to improve good governance and effectiveness of public service delivery.
To officially announce the project entitled “Using Open Data to Support Budget Transparency at District Level”, two kick-off meetings were conducted on 21 July 2020 in Ou Chrov and Malai respectively. In the morning, ODC and STAR Kampuchea teams traveled to Ou Chrov district hall for the meeting arrangement. The team was warmly welcomed by the district officials. There were 25 people attending the meeting.
The meeting started with the national anthem which was singed by the participants. Ms. Chet Charya, Executive Director of STAR Kampuchea opened the meeting with an introduction to the project which included project overview, objectives, and timeline. After that, Mr. Thy Try, ODC Executive Director introduced himself and ODC template to the participants. With extensive experience in website development and Facebook page management, ODC team will support the district administration to create and design their website. Mr. Try also mentioned that he hoped this short project would bring good cooperation between the two organizations and the district administration.
Mr. An Vannak, Ou Chrov Acting District Governor gave his opening speech. He expressed his appreciation to SPIDER , ODC and STAR Kampuchea that provide support to the district administration and he hoped that the project would be implemented smoothly. This collaboration will make the improvement in district administration implementation.
During a group discussion, Mr. Nong Thoeun, Ou Chrov Deputy Governor said that “There is no official website of Ou Chrov district, and it is crucial since the district administration has conducted many activities. After having a website, the district administration can upload information to the platform, and it will help raise awareness of citizens. Wide information dissemination will result in the citizens being able to learn to access information via the district website. It creates openness and transparency to the public. Especially youth, they have ICT knowledge. Thus, they can keep the district’s activities on track.”
After the introduction to the project as well as the discussion to clarify any ambiguous points, ODC, STAR Kampuchea and the Ou Chrov district administration finally signed on a cooperation agreement to officially implement the project.
The project activity was immediately implemented. ODC Web Development and IT Officer conducted an interview with the Ou Chrov district admin/finance chief to well-understand about their requirement for the district website.
Another kick-off meeting took place at Malai district hall with 20 participants. The agenda of the meeting followed the same format as in the morning. Starting with the presentation of the project introduction, then followed by the discussion and ended with a cooperation agreement signing.
Not different from the Ou Chrov Acting District Governor, Mr. Em Sokha, Malai District Governor also expressed his sincere thanks to the support from both NGOs which is in parallel with current requirements.
This project “Using Open Data to Support Budget Transparency at District Level” funded by the SPIDER – The Swedish Program for ICT in Developing Regions, implemented by ODC, with its partners STAR Kampuchea.
