Canada’s Plan on Open Government 2016-2018

Why do this:

Canada was an early adopter of access to information legislation, first introducing the Access to Information Act in 1983. The Access to Information Act maintains openness and transparency by serving the important public interest of enabling public debate on the conduct of government institutions, in turn strengthening the accountability of the Government of Canada to Canadians. In recent years, the need to update the Act has been noted during open government consultations and by the Information Commissioner as well as other stakeholders. It has not been significantly updated since 1983.

How will it be done:

In March 2016, the Government announced a two-step approach to revitalize access to information: (1) move forward in the near term on the Government’s commitments to improve the Access to Information Act, followed by (2) a full review of the Act, no later than 2018.

The Government’s commitments to improve the Act in the near term include:

• Making government data and information open by default, in formats that are modern and easy to use;
• Eliminating all fees, except for the initial $5 filing fee;
• Providing requestors with a written explanation when information cannot be released;
• Giving Government institutions and the Information Commissioner authority to decline to process requests that are frivolous or vexatious;
• Giving the Information Commissioner the power to order the release of government information;
• Ensuring that the Access to Information Act applies appropriately to the Prime Minister’s and Ministers’ Offices, as well as administrative institutions that support Parliament and the courts;
• Undertaking a mandatory legislative review of the Access to Information Act every five years; and
• Strengthening performance reporting on the Access to Information program.

To make early progress on these commitments, on May 5, 2016 the Government of Canada issued an Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act. The Directive sends a strong message across federal institutions that government information belongs to the people it serves and should be open by default. It emphasizes that government information should be available to the public, except in very limited and specific situations when it must be protected for reasons such as privacy, confidentiality, and security.  The Directive also directs federal officials to:

• waive all Access to Information fees apart from the $5 filing fee; and
• release information in user-friendly formats (e.g. spreadsheets), whenever feasible.

Milestones:

• Seek input from Parliament, the Information Commissioner, stakeholders and through consultations with Canadians on how to revitalize access to information.
• Introduce legislation to move forward on improvements to the Access to Information Act.
• Once this first round of improvements has been implemented, undertake a full review of the Access to Information Act by no later than 2018.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, working with Justice Canada and the Privy Council Office

Why do this:

Transparency includes providing Canadians with timely access to their own personal information held by government.

How will it be done:

To make it easier for Canadians to access government information, including their personal information, the Government will create a simple, central website where Canadians can submit requests to any government institution. This will be backed up with a 30-day guarantee for personal information requests: should a request take longer than 30 days to fulfill, it is proposed that the Government will provide a written explanation for the delay to the requester and to the Privacy Commissioner.

Milestones:

• Develop a central website where Canadians can submit personal information requests to any government institution, with first phase of roll-out targeted for 2018.
• Implement a 30-day guarantee for requests for personal information, backed by a commitment to provide a written explanation to the requester and the Privacy Commissioner should a request take longer than 30 days to fulfill.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

Open data has the potential to transform how government officials make decisions and how citizens interact with government. By providing a range of quality open data from reliable sources, Canada will support informed participation and engagement in the development of programs, services, and policies by citizens and government workers alike. The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that its data is open by default. Data must be discoverable, accessible, and reusable without restriction so as to enhance transparency, enable better services to Canadians, facilitate innovation, and inform public participation.

How will it be done:

Over the last five years, federal departments and agencies have established a good foundation of available open data. The Treasury Board Secretariat’s Directive on Open Government requires federal departments to maximize the release of eligible government data and publish Open Government Implementation Plans outlining how they would implement the Directive's requirements.

The next step is about increasing the diversity, timeliness, and quality of data released, to maximize the potential impact of the reuse of the government’s data by Canadians. As an example, Statistics Canada will increase access to high-quality statistical information in open formats, including releasing all 2016 Census data a full 10 months sooner than the 2011 Census. Steps will also be taken to ensure the data are well understood by Canadians.

In addition, a key focus will be placed on streamlining and improving the process by which departments proactively disclose information on government spending and human resources online. Finally, the Government of Canada will continue to take advantage of opportunities to share best practices and work with data experts both nationally and internationally to improve its own open data services and support the release of high quality data.

Milestones:

• Develop and publish departmental inventories of federal data, as required by the Directive on Open Government, to support collaboration with the public on setting priorities for the release of open data.
• Set a baseline for the total volume of open data to be released over time and establish departmental targets for the publication of releasable data over the next five years:
  • Publish departmental targets and progress on departments’ release of open data.
• Develop and refine guidance to help federal departments and agencies set priorities for the release of high-value open data and understand the specific circumstances under which data cannot be released for privacy, security, and/or confidentiality reasons:
  • Establish data quality standards for open data;
  • Develop metadata standards to enhance data interoperability and discoverability; and
  • Develop guidance on the anonymization of datasets.
• Provide access to high-quality, open statistical data and information from Statistics Canada, free of charge, in machine-readable formats under an open license and accessible via open.canada.ca:
  • Release the results of the 2016 Census (Short Form and Long Form) in 2017 based on a published release schedule; and
  • Host on-line “Chat with an Expert” and in-person “Talking Stats” sessions to enable Canadians to interact with Statistics Canada analysts and better understand the published data.
• Improve Canadians’ access to data and information proactively disclosed by departments and agencies through a single, common online search tool:
  • Enhance self-service tools for departments to publish proactive disclosure information to strengthen the quality of data being released.
• Adopt the International Open Data Charter and initiate implementation of the Charter requirements:
  • Encourage civil society and private sector organizations to open up their own data where this would be of public benefit; and
  • Measure progress and report on Canada’s implementation of Charter principles.

Lead Departments:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat; Statistics Canada

Why do this:

Canada has made significant progress on improving public access to government data under its last two Action Plans. By improving access to other forms of government information and ensuring preservation of this information, the Government of Canada can promote and maintain informed participation and sound decision-making.

How will it be done:

The Government of Canada will provide enhanced, centralized, one-stop access to digital content from departments and agencies across government. Guidance will be provided to ensure the ongoing preservation of this information through the application of consistent standards and practices for long-term preservation.

Milestones:

• Enhance the Open Information Portal on open.canada.ca to improve access to digital publications made available by the federal government and develop a strategy to ensure the sustainability of access over time.
• Develop and publish clear guidelines on the preservation and retention of digital content.
• Increase Canadians’ access to records documenting the continuing memory of the Government of Canada.
• Update Library and Archives Canada’s online archive of the Government of Canada’s web presence to ensure Canadians’ long-term access to federal web content.
• Expand the implementation of the government-wide information technology solution for the effective management of federal records and documents (GCDOCS) as a foundation for improved transparency:
  • Roll out this common solution managed by Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) to 125,000 government workers across government departments by June 2018.

Lead Departments:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat; Library and Archives Canada

Why do this:

Open government is a relatively new way of doing things, and there is no single, common, and agreed-upon methodology to measure progress on all aspects that are important to Canada. As Canada defines its goals, it will also have to define how it wants to measure them, identifying interim steps towards longer term objectives.

How will it be done:

Government departments and agencies are publishing their plans for releasing data and information. The government will measure the implementation of these plans to help assess progress on improving openness and transparency. Further analysis will be completed as part of the development of an overall Performance Management Framework for government-wide information management. Work will also be done to better measure progress on broad open government efforts.

Milestones:

• Integrate key performance indicators related to openness and transparency as part of a Performance Framework for managing data and information government-wide.
• Measure and report publically on annual departmental progress on implementation of the Directive on Open Government.
• Work on developing a performance management framework and indicators that can better measure a wider breadth of Open Government efforts and outcomes.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

Public servants in the Government of Canada must change how they design and deliver programs to support Canada’s commitments to transparency and public engagement. An openness mindset needs to be integrated into their day-to-day business activities. Open data, for example, is useful not only to those who regularly evaluate and use data to support financial, statistical, and socio-economic analysis, but also to non-data specialists working in policy, operational, and service delivery areas. Sharing and leveraging data and information across the government can help innovation flourish.

How will it be done:

Individuals working in departments across government will have access to learning material to build their skills and capabilities for using open data, open information, and open dialogue to support better operational and policy decisions. Furthermore, to boost the value of available open data to Canadians, public servants can be guided to understand how to set priorities for data or information publication, based on its potential value to users both inside and outside of government.

Milestones:

• Provide enhanced information management learning opportunities and additional materials to raise public servants’ awareness and understanding of open government principles and practices, including:
  • Using open data and information to support policy analysis and development;
  • Sharing best practices in digital public engagement;
  • Setting priorities for the release of open data and information based on potential public impact and benefit; and
  • Implementing the Directive on Open Government.
• Lead and/or participate in educational forums and workshops designed to further the understanding of how to increase government transparency and foster civic engagement.

Lead Departments:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat; Canada School of Public Service

Why do this:

Excellence in service delivery is at the core of citizens’ expectations for their governments. For a government to truly be open and accountable, it must deliver responsive services and be transparent on results.

How will it be done:

The government is developing a Service Strategy that will transform service design and delivery across the public service, putting clients at the centre.

Milestones:

• Develop a Government of Canada Clients-First Service Strategy that aims to create a single online window for all government services.
• Establish new performance standards and set up a mechanism to conduct rigorous assessments of the performance of key government services, and report findings publicly.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

An increasing proportion of Canadian Culture and Heritage artefacts is available in a digitized format. This opens new opportunities to expand the scope and reach of Canadian museums and the social and economic benefits they deliver to Canadians. Using Linked Open Data approaches, this initiative will link the collections across Canadian museums forming a National Inventory of Cultural and Heritage Artefacts.

How will it be done:

In 2015-16, the Canadian Heritage Information Network Program (CHIN) partnered with eight art museums across Canada to develop an approach to link the collections of each museum with each other, and to related external resources, based on industry best practices (e.g., Linked Open Data). This work demonstrates the feasibility of using Open Data approaches to link collections across museums and other memory organizations.

Building on these results, CHIN will develop and implement a multi-year business strategy to work with the Culture and Heritage community to grow the network of linked collections through the Canadian Culture and Heritage Linked Open Data Cloud.

Milestones:

• Develop authorities and standards to guide the consistent implementation of this approach.
• Enhance the ability to search and browse across museum collections.
• Expand the network of museums participating in this initiative and the links to related external resources.
• Host digital collections for museums that currently do not have a digital presence.

Lead Department:

Canadian Heritage

Why do this:

Canadians expect their government to implement effective and efficient programs and services, and to report transparently on whether they are meeting their intended goals. A clear understanding of what resources are being used by departments to deliver programs and services is fundamental to Parliament’s role of holding government accountable for delivering on its priorities. Information on planned spending and results for government activities is currently provided through mandatory departmental reports, including Reports on Plans and Priorities (RPPs) and Departmental Performance Reports (DPRs). As a result, understanding how well the government is doing as a whole, or in key areas of interest, is challenging because data is presented across multiple reports and information sources.

How will it be done:

As part of the government’s new Policy on Results, mandatory departmental reporting will be re-focused on each department’s long-term mandates as well as their immediate priorities. Related data from planned and actual activities will be available on a searchable online database that will provide quick and easy access to detailed information on government spending and people management. This data will be presented in a manner which will facilitate Canadians’ analysis and broader understanding of where government resources are being invested.

Milestones:

• Release an interactive tool that will increase the granularity of data and information made available and enable Canadians to better understand federal departmental spending:
  • Expand the types of data, graphics, and analytics available including:
    • Planned and actual results;
    • Comparisons between historical and planned spending; and
    • Spending on specific components such as salaries, capital, transfer payments, etc.
  • Enable users to explore government spending of the most interest to them based on key data elements (e.g., target group, program type, priority area, etc.).
• Pilot updating the buyandsell.gc.ca site to record the full details of contracts (in addition to awards), contract amendments, and the final termination of contracts.
• Participate in a case study to share best practices from Public Service and Procurement Canada’s pilot of the Open Contracting Data Standard on BuyandSell.gc.ca.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat; Public Services and Procurement Canada

Why do this:

Each year, the Department of Finance Canada plans and prepares the federal government’s budget and analyzes economic and fiscal developments. This serves to provide policy advice on a wide range of economic issues of concern to the health of Canada’s economy. The datasets for federal budgets have been released publicly since 2015 but with a lag time of six to eight weeks given formatting, editing and translation requirements. Listings of briefing subjects prepared on a wide range of economic issues have only been made available to specific requestors through access to information requests.

How will it be done:

There is an opportunity to accelerate the preparation of the datasets used in the Budget. This would allow their publication in near real-time following the release of the Budget to facilitate analysis by citizens and Parliamentarians. There is also an opportunity to broaden public access to briefing subjects raised by the Department, to help advance understanding of the range of economic and fiscal topics being addressed to support a healthy economy.

Milestones:

• Starting with Budget 2017, make all data from Budget charts and tables available in near real time to facilitate analysis by citizens and Parliamentarians.
• Publish the listings of briefing note subjects prepared by Department of Finance officials on a regular basis to clarify the nature of policy and other issues raised to inform government decision-making.

Lead Department:

Department of Finance

Why do this:

Each year, the Government of Canada provides funding to support initiatives focussed on career development, employment, homelessness, seniors, youth, and others through its various grants and contributions programs. Disbursing these funds works to meet the objectives and goals of the government and ultimately helps to better serve Canadians. Proactive reporting on grants and contributions by departments is currently distributed, with limited capacity to search across government. Furthermore, data is currently only required for Gs&Cs with a funding amount in excess of $25,000. Data published across government is in non-standard formats, thus making it more difficult to share.

How will it be done:

Federal departments and agencies with the authority to deliver Gs&Cs funding are currently required to publicly disclose data on agreements in excess of $25,000 in order to foster greater transparency and openness. To further support the government’s commitment to transparency and openness, information on agreements less than $25,000 will now also be disclosed, and the consistency of the data published will be improved to allow for increased searchability.

Milestones:

• Provide Canadians with centralized access to standardized information on grants and contributions funding that is proactively disclosed by federal departments via a common, searchable portal on open.canada.ca:
  • Establish a standardized, common template for federal departments to publish their data through the centralized portal;
  • Increase access to Gs&Cs information through a decrease to the required disclosure amount from $25,000 to $1;
  • Provide training to federal departments on how to upload their data; and
  • Ensure historical data previously disclosed by federal departments on grants and contributions funding is searchable via the central portal.
• In consultation with internal and external stakeholders, expand the amount of information on grants and contributions funding disclosed by departments to align with international standards.
• Pilot an approach to improving transparency in the delivery of grants and contributions by Canadian Heritage, including publication of:
  • An increased level of detail in the data proactively disclosed on individual grants and contributions awarded by the department;
  • Performance results against published service standards; and
  • Data on events and celebrations funded by the department.

Lead Departments:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Canadian Heritage

Why do this:

Currently, business identity information is distributed across jurisdictions in Canada, which poses access challenges for citizens and businesses alike. The federal, provincial, and territorial governments have agreed to collaborate on enhancing processes to reduce the burden on corporate registration and reporting and to provide streamlined access to corporate information through an online search. Making information about Canadian companies and organizations more accessible, discoverable, and usable, can ultimately improve corporate accountability.

How will it be done:

The federal government, Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia, Manitoba, and British Columbia will collaborate on the development of an expandable and adaptable digital solution.

Milestones:

• Launch a pilot project to provide citizens and business with online capacity to search existing federal and provincial (from Ontario, Québec, and Nova Scotia) business registries through a single search tool.
• Develop a proof of concept and prototype of a digital solution for reducing burden in the areas of corporate search, registration, and reporting for Canadian businesses that is expandable to all registries across Canada in order to drive consistency in corporate data provided to the public by both federal and provincial governments.

Lead Department:

Innovation, Science, and Economic Development

Why do this:

Over the last five years, federal departments have worked together to establish a single platform to collect and share geospatial data. This effort enables Canadians to more easily discover, view, and understand geospatial data. Building on this strong foundation, the focus in the coming years will be to increase the quality and usability of geospatial data to derive additional information, solve problems, help with context setting, and assist with evidence-based decision-making.

How it will be done:

The geospatial data collection will be expanded, and the technologies to access that data will be improved, thereby fundamentally changing the way geospatial assets can be accessed and used by government and the public. The single window to federal geospatial data, open maps, will support progress towards a modern, networked, and tech-enabled society. It will ensure effective program delivery, improve services to Canadians, and support them in their day-to-day activities.

Milestones:

• Improve access to open geospatial data through the expansion of open maps:
  • Increase the number of federal geospatial datasets available through a single window enabling Canadians to more easily find relevant geospatial data that can be mapped and visualized;
  • Provide access to satellite imagery through an open licence; and
  • Work with researchers, data enthusiasts, and developers who use geospatial data to share their work through the open maps gallery.
• Develop geospatial data and web service standards:
  • Increase the quality and standardization of critical geospatial data assets through strategic investments;
  • Implement a management and investment framework for high value federal geospatial data assets; and
  • Participate in geospatial standards bodies to ensure that Canada's data continues to be accessible and interoperable nationally and internationally.
• Develop Geospatial Applications:
  • Build mobile applications to disseminate key information to Canadians in an interactive format, which makes complex and large amounts of information easy to understand;
  • Provide targeted applications, which use open geospatial data to address the policy priorities of government; and
  • Provide the ability for Canadians to share data they collect through standardized tools.

Lead Department:

Natural Resources Canada

Why do this:

The Government of Canada undertakes a wide range of scientific activities, making significant investments in scientific research and knowledge creation that are essential for informing policy choices or decision making, providing services to Canadians, and ultimately supporting sustainable economic growth. At the same time, the government highlighted its commitment to ensuring that government science is fully available to the public, consistent with its broader pledge for openness and transparency.

How will it be done:

Horizontal implementation of the federal open science initiative began in 2012. Under the new plan, the Government of Canada wants to build on past work by taking bold steps to make government-funded science open and transparent to Canadians. Reflecting the importance of citizen engagement and collaboration, deliverables will focus on increasing the accessibility of government science, helping to ensure Canadians are informed of opportunities to engage in federal science and technology (S&T) activities, and exploring ways to enhance the impact of government data and information.

Underscoring the government's commitment to open science at the recent meeting of G7 Science and Technology Ministers, Canada supported a recommendation to establish an international working group on open science. This group would focus on sharing open science policies, exploring supportive incentive structures, and identifying good practices for promoting increased access to the results of publicly funded research, including scientific data and publications.

Milestones:

Lead Departments:

Environment and Climate Change Canada; Innovation, Science, and Economic Development

Why do this:

As governments at all levels continue to make more and more open data available to the public, it will be important to help support the private sector in extracting knowledge and value from that data to build their businesses. In order to develop new products, retain talent, and achieve prosperity, competitiveness, and productivity for Canada, Canada's Open Data Exchange (ODX) was established in 2015 as a partnership among the private, public, and academic sectors to support the commercialization of open data by Canadian companies.

How will it be done:

The ODX will take advantage of key opportunities to work collaboratively with stakeholders at all levels to increase the number of open data companies in Canada and to explore new methods for improving access and extracting value from open data.

Milestones:

• Complete a comprehensive mapping of 150 Canadian companies that are using open data to launch new products and services, create commercial and non-profit ventures, optimize their business processes, conduct research, and/or make data-driven decisions.
• Launch an online platform at www.opendata500.com/ca to showcase Canada's Open Data 150.
• Establish a national network of open data users within industry to collaborate on the development of standards and practices in support of data commercialization.
• Collaborate with private industry on three demonstration projects to illustrate the commercialization potential of open data in priority sectors.
• Incubate 15 new data-driven companies by June 2018.

Lead Department:

Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev) in collaboration with Canada's Open Data Exchange (ODX)

Why do this:

Across Canada, different governments at the federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal levels have varying levels of open data implementation. While some governments have launched open data portals and made numerous datasets available, others do not have official open data or open government policies or initiatives. Furthermore, governments set priorities for different types of data for release, which may make it difficult for Canadians to compare data across jurisdictions. Each government may also measure and record data differently, which can make it difficult to compare data even when that data is open. The true value of open data can really be unlocked when similar, high-value data is released using consistent, standardized approaches, so that Canadians can easily compare data among departments, across geographic locations, and over time.

How will it be done:

The Government of Canada has made preliminary progress with its counterparts at the provincial/territorial level on the development of common open data principles, common licencing, and promotion of the reuse of open data. Moving forward, the Government of Canada will work with other levels of government to expand collaboration across jurisdictions and to develop a list of high-value datasets that are priorities for governments to release. This work will help increase the comprehensiveness of open data available to Canadians and encourage comparability of data across different governments. In addition, work will begin with one or more provincial partners to collaborate on a pilot project that will allow users to search data from multiple governments via a common portal. This pilot project will provide an opportunity to accelerate data standardization efforts and better understand the challenges and opportunities associated with federated search.

Milestones:

• Foster the adoption of common open data principles that are consistent with the International Open Data Charter by all levels of government
• Develop a list of high-value, priority datasets for release in collaboration with key jurisdictions to make it easier for Canadians to compare data across different governments.
• Launch an online, federated, multi-jurisdictional open data search service in partnership with one or more provinces and territories to allow Canadians to search and access data from across jurisdictions, regardless of its origin.
• Host a national Open Data Canada summit in 2017 to bring together federal, provincial/ territorial, and municipal officials to collaborate on setting a national agenda for aligning and improving the delivery of open data across the country.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

The Government of Canada remains committed to improving the transparency and accountability of the Canadian extractives sector. In its second Action Plan, legislation was introduced, the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), which established new reporting and transparency obligations for the Canadian extractive sector to contribute to global efforts against corruption in the extractive sector.

How will it be done:

Implementation of the ESTMA will help improve the transparency of payments made by extractive companies involved in the exploration and/or extraction of oil, gas, or minerals to all levels of government, both foreign and domestic.

Milestones:

• Establish processes for reporting entities to publish their reports and create means for the public to access the reports.
• Seek alignment of ESTMA with other jurisdictions.

Lead Department:

Natural Resources Canada

Why do this:

To ensure that the global open government movement is not restricted to the wealthiest or most technologically advanced governments, it is important to ensure that Canada continues to support peer knowledge exchange and capacity-building efforts. Citizens of all nations can benefit both socially and economically from open government, regardless of who they are or where they live.

How will it be done:

Under Canada's first two Action Plans, steps were taken to ensure greater transparency and quality of Canada's international aid data. Canada worked with partners in the Open Data for Development (OD4D) network to build capacity around the world for ambitious open government initiatives to benefit citizens. By expanding these initiatives, and undertaking new leadership roles in support of the Open Government Partnership and the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI), Canada can help ensure citizens around the world have access to government information and opportunities to engage in public affairs. This will also facilitate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals.

Milestones:

• Endorse the Open Government Partnership's Joint Declaration on Open Government for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (PDF, 36 KB), and leverage Canada's participation in the OGP to help support the declaration's commitments.
• Leverage Canada's role as chair of the International Aid Transparency Initiative to support international good practices on aid transparency and greater interoperability among data standards (e.g., aid, public procurement, public accounts, corporate identifiers) to enable greater accountability and improve the effectiveness of development finance.
• Provide training and peer-learning to at least 500 open data leaders in government and civil society in developing countries, provide technical assistance to at least 10 developing countries, increasing the quality and ambition of their open data policies, and assess how capacity-building activities affect communities.
• Work with international organizations and partners in developing countries to implement innovative open data projects with impact on anti-corruption, local governance, health, and education.
• In support of Canada's role as a partner in the Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN):
  • Increase the amount of high-value, reusable agriculture and nutrition data made available to Canadians in open formats under the Government of Canada's open licence.
  • Participate in the planning of the GODAN Summit in September 2016 in order to support the global agenda for opening agriculture and nutrition data around the world.

Lead Departments:

Global Affairs Canada, the International Development Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, and Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

Collaboration among governments and civil society on open government reforms is a cornerstone of the Open Government Partnership model. As a result, member countries are required to establish a permanent mechanism for ongoing public dialogue in order to foster transparency and empower civil society organizations’ interaction on open government. Establishing a permanent forum for dialogue provides a formal structure for regular, two-way communication between government and civil society.

How will it be done:

Canada initially established a multi-stakeholder advisory panel to support development and implementation of Canada’s first two Action plans. Canada is committed to cultivating an effective relationship with civil society by designing and nurturing a renewed mechanism to support constructive, ongoing dialogue between government and non-government stakeholders. Led by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, this renewed mechanism will establish a strong link between government and civil society. It will engage regularly to track progress on Canada’s commitments, identify potential new areas of focus, and help raise awareness of open government issues across Canada.

Milestones:

• Develop and maintain a renewed mechanism for ongoing, meaningful dialogue between the Government of Canada and civil society organizations on open government issues across the country.
• Undertake targeted engagement activities to discuss open government issues in specific domains with key civil society stakeholders.

Lead Department:

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

Public engagement through open dialogue and participatory processes is vital to the success of government. The Government of Canada recognizes that informed decision making requires the knowledge, views, values and skills of experts, stakeholders, and citizens to inform and shape effective government policies, programs, and services. Consultation provides participants an opportunity to state how an issue affects them, identify underlying values and contribute to shared outcomes.

How will it be done:

Through this open dialogue commitment, the government will engage citizens, stakeholders, and other governments, to participate in well-designed processes that create space for deliberation and collaboration of the participants involved. The Government of Canada will adopt common principles, clarify needs and implement tools and guidance to foster greater collaboration across traditional organizational boundaries.

Milestones:

• Promote common principles for Open Dialogue and common practices across the Government of Canada to enable the use of new methods for consulting and engaging Canadians.
• Identify necessary supports (e.g. skills development, resourcing, technological innovation) needed to deliver on the full potential of engaging with stakeholders.
• Identify and support participatory processes undertaken by departments to share lessons learned and demonstrate the value of including stakeholders and members of the public throughout the policy, program or service design and implementation.
• Develop, implement the measurement of, and promote indicators for open government to support benchmarking and continuous improvement.

Lead Departments:

Privy Council Office; Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

The Government is committed to working with international partners in government, civil society, private sector, and academia to support the principles of openness and transparency around the world. The world is witnessing a global transformation, fueled by citizens’ desire to better understand how their governments make decisions and develop policy. This global open government movement is essential to promoting the rule of law, reducing corruption, promoting public access to information, and developing effective and accountable institutions.

How will it be done:

Canada will undertake leadership roles in the global open government community, supporting the International Open Data Charter and the Open Government Partnership, and fostering new strategic partnerships through organizations like the International Organisation of La Francophonie. By working collaboratively with international partners to promote common, global principles of open government, Canada can cement its role as a world leader in openness and transparency.

Milestones:

• Participate in key forums internationally to learn from other countries and share our challenges and successes.
• Strengthen the capacity to deliver open data in Francophone Africa through support to locally-led, multi-stakeholder processes and international conferences.
• Promote the principles of the International Open Data Charter, participate in the development of enabling resources and tools for the Charter, and support the development of the World Wide Web Foundation’s Open Data Barometer through the Open Data for Development (OD4D) network to measure the Charter’s implementation by governments around the world.

Lead Departments:

Global Affairs Canada; Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Why do this:

Service excellence is a top priority for the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), and the agency is committed to ensuring high-quality services are delivered to Canadians in a way that makes them feel respected and valued.

How will it be done:

Over the next two years, CRA will undertake a number of key public consultation and engagement activities to respond to key challenges:

• CRA currently publishes open data in various categories both on its website and on Canada’s Open Data portal. A better understanding of the public’s satisfaction with, and interest in, statistical tax publications and related data, is needed to meet the growing demand for data that is of value to Canadians.
• CRA has committed to providing more information on the regulation of charities to the public in a timely manner and to ensuring the engagement of the charitable sector in support of rules that are fair, open, and easily accessible and understood.
• Each year a number of indigenous Canadians miss out on potential tax benefits. Through consultation, new data, and collaboration with other government departments and stakeholders CRA will seek to empower indigenous Canadians to obtain the tax benefits to which they are entitled.

Milestones:

• Complete an online consultation with Canadians to measure public satisfaction with, and interest in, statistical tax publications and related data.
• Engage with registered charities, the public, and other stakeholders in the charitable sector to help clarify rules governing charities’ political activities.
  • Conduct online and in-person consultations sessions on what information is needed, what form any future rules should take, and how best to communicate them to stakeholders and the general public.
• Engage with indigenous Canadians to better understand the issues, root causes, and data gaps that may be preventing eligible individuals from accessing benefits.

Lead Department:

Canada Revenue Agency