CoST started the OGP Global Summit in the same way it finished it – strong and impactful in furthering infrastructure transparency, accountability and participation. 

CoST member, Bogotá received an honorable recognition for its leadership work in public infrastructure through CoST. The city joined CoST in 2021 under its Transparency Decree, committing to publish data on eight major projects worth $7.3 billion USD, including for transport, hospitals and the Carrera 7 Corridor – an important pedestrian avenue of art, history, and local culture in the city’s heart. Since then, Bogotá has published data on 120+ infrastructure projects, further strengthening its commitment to open data and accountability in public investment. 

This achievement, presented at the international gathering of open government leaders, highlights Bogotá’s strong commitment to open governance, citizen oversight, and transparency in infrastructure investment. 

Cali’s Infrastructure Secretariat also received an honorable recognition for its innovative transparency platform, developed under CoST. 

The platform provides real-time public access to data on road works, construction progress, budgets, and contractors—empowering citizens to monitor how public funds are spent. This achievement highlights Cali’s commitment to open government, citizen participation, and accountability in infrastructure investment.

This builds on CoST’s existing success at the summit, which continued on Friday, through participation in two side events. Senior Regional Manager for Latin America, Manuel Gonzalez spoke at the International Congress on Open State and Governance, highlighting CoST LATAM’s work with academia to drive infrastructure transparency. 

Meanwhile Strategic Advisor, Soren Kirk Jensen, spoke at an Eastern Partnership Community Dialogue session on the human cost of corruption, giving examples of CoST’s work in Ukraine and Guatemala in saving money, as well as our recent work with the private sector, including key insights from our portal. He also once again highlighted the value of our new guidance note as a practical example as a call to action that people could take. 

One key observation from this week was the strength and resilience of the open government community, despite varying and sometimes difficult contexts, as well as the continued importance of infrastructure in open government spaces. 

Programme Director, John Hawkins, said: “Infrastructure is part of the conversation. Sector approaches are being understood more, and there’s more openness to sector specific processes. This includes the important focus on the environment and climate change. Our new guidance note also highlights how infrastructure is, and must be, on the agenda.” 

The CoST team had a wonderful time at the Summit, learning a lot, and connecting with other key stakeholders in the space.