Improved access to government information through open data

Action plan for the accessibility and sharing of ministries’ and public bodies’ open data

MONTRÉAL, June 18, 2018 – Today, Minister Robert Poëti, Minister for Integrity in Public Procurement and for Information Resources, unveiled the action plan for the accessibility and sharing of ministries’ and public bodies’ open data.

With the four components of open government in mind (transparency, innovation, participation and collaboration), the Government of Québec will, by March 31, 2020, respond to four major challenges:

• Return public data to citizens
• Innovate with open data
• Involve citizens in public affairs
• Develop a culture of collaboration

The action plan was developed using the best practices described by the Open Government Partnership, which involves more than seventy member countries. Through this approach, the Government of Québec wishes to take advantage of the expertise of other public administrations and international organizations to carry out all the commitments of the action plan.

The action plan for the accessibility and sharing of ministries’ and public bodies’ open data is an important driver of transformation for the Government of Québec.

Quote:

With this action plan, citizens will be able to contribute to the improvement of public services, learn more about government activities and participate in the development of solutions to socio-economic issues. I am confident that by involving government stakeholders and citizens, we will all succeed in making the government more open and firmly committed to working with its population to improve services. I am proud to contribute to building a more open society that embraces transparency, innovation, participation and collaboration.

– Robert Poëti, Minister for Integrity in Public Procurement and for Information Resources.

Key points:

• The action plan for the accessibility and sharing of ministries’ and public bodies’ open data is part of the third guideline of the Quebec Digital Strategy, launched in December 2017.
• The action plan contains ten clear commitments to foster citizen engagement and the dissemination of high-quality open data.
• There are now twelve cities that publish open data on the Données Québec portal: Blainville, Gatineau, Laval, Longueuil, Montréal, Québec City, Repentigny, Rimouski, Shawinigan, Sherbrooke, Rouyn-Noranda and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.
• The total cost estimate for the action plan’s commitments is $3.3 million for all the relevant departments and agencies over the next two years.