Open contracting has become a mainstream reform across the Open Government Partnership, with 59% of member countries now publishing procurement data in the Open Contracting Data Standard, a pace more than four times higher than non-OGP countries. That matters because public procurement absorbs roughly one in every three government dollars worldwide, making it one of the biggest leakage points for corruption, inefficiency and inflated costs.
OGP members expand open contracting data use
The new OGP review says 43 member countries are now disclosing contracting data in OCDS format, while 43 have logged concrete reforms during their action plans, including new laws, more open portals and stronger civil society oversight. In 15 countries, OGP-backed work helped pass legislation or regulation to open procurement, and in 10 countries the reforms produced measurable economic gains such as lower costs, better competition and more efficient spending.
For investors, the significance goes beyond transparency rhetoric. Better procurement disclosure can improve public finances, reduce project delays and make infrastructure spending more predictable, which supports sovereign credit quality and the execution of large public works programs. It also lowers corruption risk in markets where state contracting drives demand for construction, logistics, IT and industrial suppliers.
The OGP says the most durable gains have come where governments paired data disclosure with civil society participation and institutional follow-through. Colombia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Mongolia and Romania used the partnership to formalize government-civil society collaboration, while Romania tied transparency in local development funds to its OECD accession process, giving the reforms an external enforcement mechanism.
Country examples show why the model has traction. Ukraine’s ProZorro system, built on open contracting data, helped the country save about $6 billion between October 2017 and 2021, according to research cited by OGP. In Kaduna State, Nigeria, one portal disclosed 1,379 projects worth NGN 95.7 billion by April 2025, helping uncover flawed hospital work that led the deputy governor to revoke a contract.
The push is now spreading into newer digital procurement systems. Mongolia has linked tenders, bids and contract winners on a public platform, while Kenya in April 2025 launched a national platform that automates procurement from planning through payment and ties contract bidding to beneficial ownership data. Brazil and the UK are also building on existing transparency rules to expand public dashboards and monitoring tools under their latest commitments.
The next test is whether governments can turn open data into routine oversight, lower procurement costs and faster delivery of public services. With public spending under pressure and anti-corruption demands rising, procurement transparency is moving from a governance ideal to a fiscal and political necessity.
| Entity | Gains | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| OGP member governments | ▲lower corruption risk | ▼opaque procurement systems |
| Civil society and journalists | ▲better oversight tools | ▼less access to contract data |
| Taxpayers and citizens | ▲improved value for money | ▼waste and inflated contracts |
| Incumbent suppliers benefiting from opacity | ▲little change | ▼rent-seeking advantages |
