Open Government in Salé, Morocco

Chapter 6. Conclusion and next steps

As this analysis shows, the city of Salé can count on strong political commitment, an administration that is engaged and a culture of dialogue with civil society, together with a number of well-established practices for open government. These experiences can on the one hand inspire a cultural shift in other municipalities and in the national administration. On the other hand, the city could take advantage of this state of affairs to develop a more consistent and structured approach to open government. This would include defining a vision, objectives and precise activities, as well as setting in place an adequate institutional framework. The process would allow open government practices to be used to transform public administration and its relationship with citizens, and to draw benefit from the promise held by open government in terms of strengthening confidence and the design of better targeted policies and public services.

Box ‎6.1. Summary of recommendations

• The municipality of Salé could consider developing a strategy for open government. This strategy would group together all current initiatives and propose a roadmap for the future of open government in Salé. By defining objectives, the strategy would enable activities to be prioritised – including long and mid-term initiatives – as well as the budget and corresponding human resources. The strategy should incorporate a vision for human resources and training, together with impact evaluation indicators to measure success. It could also include a strategic document (a “vision”) for participation and a charter or action plan detailing the objectives, target groups and participatory mechanisms. The strategy would enable all actors to agree on the pathway to be followed and could set out a long-term vision that goes beyond the municipal council’s current mandate.

• The city of Salé could consider creating a coordination structure dedicated to open government. The structure could be part of an existing division, for example the division of information and communication systems, or take the form of a steering committee that includes several divisions, as well as council members, for example the mayor and committee chairpersons. This committee could be headed and/or chaired by the mayor and managed by one of the divisions. The aim of creating such a structure or mechanism would be to improve policy design for the city in the area of open government, ensuring consistency between all activities conducted in this sector, and to develop a strategic vision for open government.

• Continuous training in open government could strengthen the institutional framework of the city of Salé and provide the necessary impetus for innovative open government initiatives, for example, by harnessing information and communication technologies. Such training could be delivered in collaboration with ENA, or be based on international networks of cities engaged in open government. The city could also develop a guide that would introduce existing initiatives in this area to all public officials.

• The setting up of the Advisory Body on Equity, Equal Opportunities, and Gender could serve as a forum for debate to review participatory activities and draw up a roadmap. This could include:

  ‒ The mapping of stakeholders in Salé’s public policy, and their current involvement. This would help to identify participatory mechanisms suited to each group and would potentially lead to the development of new mechanisms to address groups that are currently less closely involved, such as the private sector, youth and women, or other marginalised groups.

  ‒ The development and setting in place of participatory mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation, as provided for in the framework of the MAP.

  ‒ An inclusive debate so as to identify all forms of participation needed by the municipality, and which it would like to develop in the medium and long term.