WE, THE MINISTERS AND REPRESENTATIVES of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union, met in Luxembourg on 18 November 2022 for the meeting of the Public Governance Committee (PGC) at Ministerial level on the overarching theme of “Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy”, under the leadership of Luxembourg as Chair, and with Colombia, France, Lithuania and the United States as Vice-Chairs, to discuss action to strengthen trust in public institutions and tackle the key public governance challenges to democracy.
WE CONDEMN Russia’s unjustifiable, unprovoked and illegal war of aggression against Ukraine in the strongest possible terms as a flagrant violation of international law that shakes the very foundation of the international order, in line with the 2022 OECD Ministerial Council Statement, RECALL the decision of the OECD Council of 8 March 2022 to immediately suspend the participation of the Russian Federation and Belarus in OECD bodies, and HIGHLIGHT the need to uphold democratic values and support democracies in countering aggressions and threats.
WE STAND IN SOLIDARITY with the people and the democratically elected government of Ukraine and will continue to support them through our work on public administration modernisation and reinforcing democracy.
WE RECALL the OECD 60th Anniversary Vision Statement which highlights that the OECD is a like-minded community, committed to the preservation of individual liberty, the values of democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights and the need to guard against threats to democracy and to combat disinformation, and the 2022 OECD Ministerial Council Statement in which Ministers agreed to work towards consolidating the economic and social foundations of democracy.
WE ACKNOWLEDGE the many long-running international and regional efforts aimed at strengthening democracy in other fora, including the recent Ninth Summit of the Americas, the Summit for Democracy and related Year of Action hosted by the United States, the 2022 G7 presided by Germany, and WE HIGHLIGHT the opportunities for co-operation and the importance of complementarity of these efforts.
WE RESTATE our shared commitment to the core values of democracy, including respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, free and fair elections and the integrity of electoral systems, respect for the rule of law, the separation of powers, the independence of the judiciary, transparency, integrity and accountability in the public sector, and an enabled and protected civic space.
WE REAFFIRM that democracy remains the system of government best placed to ensure inclusive, prosperous, sustainable and peaceful societies through constant self-assessment and self improvement.
WE STRESS that in the current socioeconomic, climate, digital and geopolitical environment, the democratic model of government needs to be both deepened and protected.
WE COMMIT to:
● Reinforce, promote and strengthen the foundations of democracies acknowledging that they should rise to the challenges of growing and changing citizens’ expectations in terms of representation, responsiveness, open government, and integrity of institutions, as well as green policies including through innovative approaches in the public sector.
● Strengthen the resilience of our democratic systems to address declining trust in public institutions, political disengagement and polarisation, as well as rising mis and dis-information and other sources of destabilisation.
● Maintain open government as a core element of our democratic systems, while continuing our ongoing and open dialogue on public governance with non-OECD Members, with a view to maintaining peace, stability and free flows of goods, services as well as data and information flows.
● Continue efforts to build professional, effective and efficient public institutions, and high-performing leadership and civil servants in support of stronger democracies.
WE WELCOME the transformation of the Global Forum on Public Governance to the OECD Global Forum on Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy as a platform to share knowledge, assess and improve public governance to meet the challenges facing democracies going forward.
Trust in public institutions
WE RECOGNISE that renewed efforts to build trust in public institutions are essential for the future of democracies.
WE WELCOME the key findings from the OECD Survey on the Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions as a call to strengthen action to place trust at the centre of policies to deliver better for citizens and reinforce democracy.
WE INVITE the OECD, through the PGC, to support our efforts in this regard by:
● Continuing to monitor and analyse the drivers of trust in public institutions through the biennial OECD Survey on the Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions.
● Developing a Gateway to Reinforcing Trust , to sit within the Global Forum on Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy, to leverage the survey results to support countries in taking concrete action to build trust and track progress over time.
● Introducing the OECD Public Governance Monitor as a new tool to support countries step-up public governance systems and reform priorities.
● Developing an OECD Recommendation on the design of government services to effectively improve people’s experiences including through life events, making these services more effective and equitable, in order to reduce administrative burden, enhance access, increase satisfaction and –ultimately- people’s trust in government institutions.
Combating Mis-information and Dis-information through a whole-of-society approach
WE RECOGNISE that free, pluralistic and resilient media and information ecosystems are critical for democracies.
WE COMMIT to address mis- and dis-information while protecting freedom of speech.
WE WELCOME the launch of the OECD DIS/MIS Information Resource Hub , to sit within the Global Forum on Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy, to facilitate a comprehensive approach to action among governments, media and civil society organisations on mis- and dis-information.
WE WELCOME the OECD Action Plan on Public Governance for Combating Mis-information and Dis-information , approved by the PGC on 5 October 2022 as set out in Annex A, and invite the OECD, through the PGC, to support our efforts towards its implementation.
Enhancing participation, representation and openness
WE RECOGNISE that strong citizen and stakeholder participation, public integrity, inclusive representation, openness, quality evidence and accountability are essential backbones of democratic governance and necessary to support trust in public institutions.
WE COMMIT to strengthening participation, combating undue influence on government policies and improving and promoting inclusion in civic and democratic processes and decision making, as well as within the civil service, including women, youth and other underrepresented groups in society.
WE WELCOME the OECD Recommendation on Creating Better Opportunities for Young People [ OECD/LEGAL/0474 ] adopted by the Council at its 2022 meeting at Ministerial level and upcoming efforts to support its implementation.
WE WELCOME the OECD’s work to support the implementation of the OECD Gender Recommendations [ C/MIN(2022)7 ].
WE WELCOME the OECD Action Plan on Participation and Representation and its Annex on Gender Equality, approved by the PGC on 5 October 2022 as set out in Annex B, and invite the OECD, through the PGC, to support our efforts towards its implementation in particular by furthering the forthcoming OECD Open, Participatory and Representative Government Index .
Embracing the Global Responsibilities of Public Institutions
WE RECOGNISE that democracies face global challenges of increasing magnitude and complexity, including tackling climate change and loss of biodiversity, as well as foreign interference by non-democratic actors.
WE ALSO RECOGNISE that the capacity of public institutions and workforces and other actors to anticipate these challenges and respond to them is critical for the future of democracy.
WE INVITE the OECD, through the PGC, to support our collaborative efforts to reinforce administrative and technical capacities to ensure that public institutions and public workforces are fit to anticipate and address global responsibilities and challenges including by developing an OECD Action Plan on Stronger Open Democracies in a Globalised World in the next 18 months.
Governing Green
WE RECOGNISE the key role of public governance to take strong and urgent transformative action on climate and sustainable development and the need to build consensus and trust, including through meaningful participatory processes, for delivering internationally-agreed global goals, such as those contained in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change in this decade for action.
WE UNDERSCORE that we need innovative and whole-of-government approaches to address these urgent challenges, upskilling the civil service and ramping-up public governance tools, including public procurement and infrastructure planning, investment and delivery, green budgeting and regulation.
WE RECOGNISE that green action and adaptation is a shared responsibility – and one where government can lead by example, taking assertive measures to transform itself to face environmental challenges and strengthen resilience across society, including for the most vulnerable.
WE WELCOME the OECD Action Plan on Governing Green , approved by the PGC on 5 October 2022 as set out in Annex C, and invite the OECD, through the PGC, and working with other relevant OECD committees, to support our efforts towards its implementation, including by furthering common approaches to definitions and measurement.
Transforming Public Governance for Digital Democracy
WE RECOGNISE the need for institutions to further adjust and adapt to the digital age and take full advantage of the new channels for public debate and participation, transparency, openness, accountability and oversight of public institutions, while striving to enhance digital literacy and inclusion.
WE COMMIT to act on the risks that have appeared regarding the preservation of the values of democracy and the defence of human rights as well as the rights of minorities and vulnerable groups, destabilised information ecosystems and polarisation, and commit to strengthen institutions to address those risks.
WE INVITE the OECD, through the PGC, to support our efforts to ensure that the benefits of digital for democracy are fully harnessed while its risks are addressed, including through the development of an Action Plan on Digital Democracy to be developed in the next 18 months.