Event Summary
Israel is withdrawing from its membership in the Open Government Partnership (OGP), which it joined upon the initiative’s establishment in 2011. On 1 February 2026, the government adopted Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Economy Minister Nir Barkat’s recommendation to leave the initiative arguing that its leaders have turned it into a political tool for attacking Israel.
The OGP is an international partnership comprising dozens of countries and involving a wide range of civil society organizations, including Israeli CSOs. Its aim is to promote transparency, accountability, public participation, and technological innovation in government systems; to strengthen public trust through involvement in decision-making processes; and to improve access to information and public services – among other means, through tools for monitoring of government decisions and actions.
Over the past decade, the Israeli government adopted a variety of “open government” measures. Among them were a three-year national action plan for 2023–2025 and the establishment of an advisory forum that included government representatives alongside Israeli CSOs. Dr. Roi Peled, a legal scholar at the College of Management and one of the figures who pushed for Israel to join the initiative while serving as CEO of the Movement for Freedom of Information, rejects the ministers’ explanation. He argues that the Israeli government is withdrawing from international forums because it does not wish to expose itself to criticism of its decisions and actions or to engage with such criticism substantively – whether the claims raised are accurate or not.
The move to withdraw from the OGP coincides with other steps currently being considered by the government, including withdrawal from the Paris Agreements and International Climate Accords. These steps are reportedly being considered due to pressure from the U.S. administration, and what Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman (Likud) describes as international frameworks that exploit environmental discourse for political purposes and to harm Israel’s global standing. The initiative is being advanced in direct opposition to the position of leading environmental organizations in Israel, such as Life and Environment.