Abstract
A number of NGOs across the world currently develop digital tools to increase citizen interaction with official information. The successful operation of such tools depends on the expertise and efficiency of the NGO, and the willingness of institutions to disclose suitable information and data. It is this institutional interaction with civic technology that this study examines. The research explores empirical interview data gathered from government officials, public servants, campaigners and NGO's involved in the development and implementation of civic technologies in Chile, Argentina and Mexico. The findings identify the impact these technologies have had upon government bureaucracy, and the existing barriers to openness created by institutionalised behaviours and norms. Institutionalised attitudes to information rights and conventions are shown to inform the approach that government bureaucracy takes in the provision of information, and institutionalised procedural behaviour is shown to be a factor in frustrating NGOs attempting to implement civic technology.
Highlights
It is uncontroversial to state that advances in technology and connectivity have rapidly changed how both citizens and institutions have conducted business over the last 25 years
Chile and Mexico are all members of the Open Government Partnership, and as a consequence of that membership have each made a comprehensive list of commitments to develop their official approach to opening up government information and improving engagement with citizens and civil society
This demonstrates a significant flaw in viewing civic technology and information and communication technologies (ICTs) as solutions in themselves, rather than as tools to assist in achieving solutions, and this study contributes to the existing literature that examines the risks of open government and open data movements (Janssen, 2012) as well as the body of literature citing the continuing deficiencies of open government practices in Latin America (Mendoza, 2013)
Summary
It is uncontroversial to state that advances in technology and connectivity have rapidly changed how both citizens and institutions have conducted business over the last 25 years. Civic technology is one of these once-niche areas of citizen-government interaction growing in popularity. “Civic technology”, described as a non-profit technology used to empower or engage citizens and make government more accountable (Knight Foundation, 2015; Patel et al, 2013), has emerged organically and in many self-contained pockets across the globe in parallel with shifts in global attitudes towards open government principles. The variety of civic technologies employed around the world is diverse, with some platforms focusing on enabling citizens to report issues in their neighbourhood to local government, and others providing user-friendly sites displaying parliamentary information. The prevailing hope of civic technology advocates is that the accessibility and interactivity of the internet will prompt governments to become more responsive
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