• “Open Gov Week 2024: Global Multistakeholder Forum” will be held on May 28-29, Seoul, Korea
• The Open Government Committee Korea leads discussions on policy areas of digital, anti-corruption and citizen participation

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety (Minister Lee Sang-min) announced that the ‘Open Gov Week 2024: Global Multistakeholder Forum’ will be held under the theme of 'Trustworthy Government Innovation and Co-creating Open Government' on May 28-29, in Seoul, Korea.

Open Gov Week (OGW) is a global initiative promoted by the Open Government Partnership (OGP) to raise public awareness on open government values of transparency, anti-corruption and participation, which was initiated in 2018. Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a multilateral initiative that supports governments and civil society to make government transparent, accountable and responsive to citizens. Since its launch in 2011, 75 countries including Korea have joined the partnership and worked with civil society. Since 2018, more than 100 countries have organized nearly 3,000 open government events and shared them with global communities, and Korea is one of them.

The ‘Open Gov Week 2024: Global Multistakeholder Forum’ organizes four sessions to discuss ways to pursue ‘trustworthy government innovation and co-creation open government’. The forum will explore open government efforts in the areas of digital, anti-corruption and citizen participation, most of which are committed in the 6th Korea’s Open Government Action Plan, a plan co-created by Korea’s multistakeholder forum, the Open Government Forum Korea. What makes this forum particularly relevant to everyday life is that it will introduce how social challenges such as vishing and hate speech can be addressed through open government.

Session 1. Lessons Learnt and Ways Forward from Korea’s Open Government Activities

The first session will convene diverse stakeholders in international organizations, government, civil society, academia and youth to explore the open government movement at the global and national levels and discuss ways forward.

This will be an opportunity to learn about global movements pushing open government forward and Korea’s legal governance and platforms for open government. Furthermore, civil society will suggest how to increase citizen participation and a youth advisor of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety will share views on how to respond to social issues posed to future generations by pursuing open government.

Session 2. Anti-Corruption and Democracy by Utilizing Legal Tech

A session on anti-corruption is themed around legal tech which presents a new paradigm of accountability driven by artificial intelligence (AI).

This session will demonstrate an auto-fill service for administrative appeal forms, the EASY Administrative Appeals, launched last February by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) and a citizen will share experiences of using the platform. In addition, academics will discuss ‘administrative decision-making and judicial review by AI’ and the ‘legal implications and prospects of legal technology.’

Session 3. Open Data and the Lives of Youth

With the theme of open data, a leading example of open government, there will be a session on the next day that touches upon interests of young people such as starting businesses and job searching.

This session will share cases of an entrepreneur who started businesses using government data and workers working with data in the public and private sectors. A university student will also share ideas on addressing a social problem, such as vishing, using public data.

Lastly, the Ministry of Employment and Labor will introduce a job search platform called Worknet, a platform using public data of jobs,

Session 4. Towards Inclusion – beyond Discrimination and Exclusion

The session on citizen participation will go one step further than 'participation' and discuss 'inclusion' moving beyond discrimination and exclusion. It will feature 'hate speech prevention' activities and diverse aspects of policies that consider vulnerable groups of people.

The presentation on hate speech prevention will introduce civil society activities, including the design of hate speech policy guidelines, and discuss problems that hate speech brings to our society and how to respond to them. 

Finally, two commitments of the action plan will be further explored which are ‘improving universal design’ for the safety and convenience of those with disabilities and the elderly and ‘open tourism’, which creates environment for accessible tourism for all.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety launched the Open Government Committee Korea (formerly known as OGP Forum Korea) in 2017 to take a holistic approach to open government and enhance citizen participation. The Open Government Committee Korea designs Korea’s Open Government Action Plan and raises awareness about open government values and principles. 

The 'Open Gov Week 2024: Global Multistakeholder Forum’ will be held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza and will be open to anyone interested in open government.

To register, scan the QR code on the poster to access the registration form. In addition, open government events held around the world can also be found on the official website of Open Gov Week (www.opengovweek.org). 

Civil Society Co-Chair, Nam Youngjun, of the Open Government Committee Korea said “This forum will demonstrate the Korean government’s willingness to listen to citizens to ensure its transparency and effectiveness.”

Vice Minister Ko Kidong of the Interior and Safety who serves as Government Co-Chair of the Open Government Committee Korea said “To enhance transparency, accountability, and citizen participation, it is crucial for governments to collaborate with civil society, academia, and youth. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety is committed to actively supporting this global event, creating an inclusive platform for various stakeholders to share experiences and strengthen partnerhip.”

For more information, please contact, Yujin Lee, Deputy Director of Innovation and Planning Division, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, at yujinflee@korea.kr

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