The Ministry of Public Administration (MPA) has achieved key results in the area of free access to information and open data, which have been recognized within the Reform Agenda, the government department announced.
The MPA said that these results confirm Montenegro's strong commitment to improving the transparency and accountability of public administration.
They stated that, as an important step forward, the Draft Law on Free Access to Information was prepared at the end of last year, which significantly improves existing mechanisms and introduces new institutes aligned with the European Union Directive (EU) 2019/1024 on open data and the reuse of public sector information.
"The Government approved the Bill on January 23 of this year, and it has already passed the relevant parliamentary committees, thus creating the foundation for its rapid adoption," the MPA said in a statement.
As they said, this law opens the door to more efficient exercise of citizens' rights to information, encourages the reuse of high-value datasets, including geospatial, meteorological, statistical and other data, and improves the work of public administration as a whole.
The statement recalls that the MPA implemented a new Open Data Portal at the end of last year. https://data.gov.me, within the project "eServices and digital infrastructure as a response measure to COVID-19".
It is stated that the portal is aligned with European standards and was integrated with the European Open Data Portal at the beginning of this year.
It is added that, in order to strengthen the capacities of institutions, the MPA organized training on open data management for 33 representatives of administrative bodies, with a gender balance of participants, which further emphasized the inclusiveness of the process.
"By adopting the new law and modernizing the Open Data Portal, Montenegro clearly demonstrates that it is on the path to building a more efficient, transparent and open public administration - at the service of citizens and in line with European standards," the statement concludes.
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