New Zealand’s National Action Plans under the Open Government Partnership.

National Action Plan cycle

New Zealand has been undertaking National Action Plans in a 2-year cycle since 2014. The government agrees on the commitments that make up a new National Action Plan through the Cabinet process. The plan is developed and usually implemented over the 2-year period and progress made against commitment milestones is publicly reported. Information on each of New Zealand's five National Action Plans including consultation and reporting can be found below. 

New Zealand’s Fifth National Action Plan (2026-2027)

The Fifth National Action Plan was developed from August – December 2025 and is currently in implementation. The plan contains four commitments: 

No. 

Commitment 

1 

Review protected disclosures practice (Public Service Commission) 

 

Undertake a practice review of the protected disclosures system, publish information on the consequences for retaliation, and scope a community of practice for organisations receiving disclosures. 

2 

Develop a corruption risk assessment tool (Serious Fraud Office) 

 

Design a Corruption Risk Assessment Tool for public sector agencies to identify corruption and insider threat risks within their organisation. The tool will assist agencies to take steps to mitigate these risks. 

3 

Support ethical government – private sector career transitions (Public Service Commission and Ministry of Justice) 

 

Produce a discussion document exploring the movement of individuals (elected and non-elected) between government and private sector roles, including lobbying, and identify potential options to support ethical transitions. 

4 

Explore options to improve transparency of senior leaders’ conflicts of interest (Public Service Commission) 

 

Research and scope options to improve transparency of conflicts of interest held by senior leaders in the public sector. Options could include an online register of interests (like the publication requirement for Ministers’ interests) or creating an independent review process for CE interest declarations.   

  • The Plan

    PDF: OGP New Zealand NAP5(PDF, 1.4 MB)

    Word Doc: OGP - New Zealand NAP5(DOCX, 156 KB)

  • Self-assessment report

    To be developed. 

  • Progress reports

    To be developed.

  • IRM report

    To be developed. 

  • Plan Development

    NAP5 Timeline: 

    • September/October 2025: Gathering ideas for commitments through online workshops and written input, and shaping them into a draft action plan.   
    • October/November 2025: Sharing responses to the input received, refining commitments with responsible agencies, and holding a final workshop to refine the draft plan.   
    • December 2025: Final opportunity for stakeholder feedback on the plan and submission of the finalised action plan to the Minister for the Public Service for approval.  

    New Zealand’s approach to NAP5 development: 

    New Zealand has been a member of OGP since 2013 and created four National Action Plans in that time. The Commission leads the development and coordination of NAPs for government.    

    The Commission’s approach to developing NAP5 built off past experience, feedback from civil society and government agencies, and recommendations from OGP’s Independent Review Mechanism (IRM) made in the New Zealand Results Report 2022-2024 and the New Zealand Co-Creation Brief 2025.  

    The key points of guidance, or rules of engagement, for New Zealand’s approach to NAP5 development were:  

    • The Minister for the Public Service has asked for a focused NAP5, well-aligned to Government priorities, and developed through a streamlined process.  
    • The OGP section of the Commission website and online workshops provide a space for ongoing stakeholder dialogue on NAP5. New Zealand will not convene an expert advisory group or formal multistakeholder committee for NAP5.  
    • The ideas most likely to become commitments in NAP5 would:  
      • Support the focus areas in the Commission’s action plan to strengthen Public Service integrity   
      • Be achievable without needing extra funding or resources  
      • Align with what Ministers and agencies are already working on  

  • Consultation

    Information session   

    Thursday 4 September from 1:30pm to 2:30pm   

    On 4 September, we hosted an online information session about the OGP and New Zealand’s approach to developing NAP5. A record of that discussion is below.   

    PDF: NAP5 Information Session record of discussion(PDF, 93 KB)

    Word Doc: NAP5 Information Session record of discussion (DOCX, 38 KB)

    Workshop 1   

    Thursday 11 September from 10:00am to 12:30pm   

    On 11 September, we hosted the first online workshop to develop NAP5. We used the focus areas in the Commission's Action plan to strengthen Public Service integrity to guide our conversation, and heard from civil society, public servants, and individuals on the ideas they have for advancing open government in New Zealand. A record of that discussion is below.   

    PDF: Workshop 1 record of discussion (PDF, 109 KB)

    Word Doc: Workshop 1 record of discussion(DOCX, 41 KB)

    Workshop 2   

    Tuesday 23 September from 1:00pm to 3:30pm   

    On 23 September, we hosted the second online workshop to develop NAP5. We used the themes from our first workshop to develop our ideas further and come up with potential commitments for NAP5. The ideas we used to guide our workshop and a record of our discussion are below.   

    PDF: Workshop 2 record of discussion(PDF, 105 KB)

    Word Doc: Workshop 2 record of discussion(DOCX, 39 KB)

    PDF: Workshop 2 ideas for development(PDF, 101 KB)

    Word Doc: Workshop 2 ideas for development(DOCX, 41 KB)

    Workshop 3 

    Wednesday 26 November from 10 – 12.30 

    On 26 November, we hosted a third online workshop to discuss a set of four draft commitments. The potential commitments we discussed are below. These commitments were developed based on the ideas and discussions in our first two workshops. We received feedback on these commitments and the process followed to develop NAP5 that is set out in the record of discussion below.  

    OGP NAP5 - Potential commitments(DOCX, 76 KB)

    PDF: Workshop 3 record of discussion(PDF, 96 KB)

    Word Doc: Workshop 3 record of discussion(DOCX, 35 KB)

    Reasoned responses   

    Throughout NAP5 development the Commission received a wide range of ideas from the public and stakeholders. While these ideas were valuable, not all could be progressed as formal commitments under the plan.   

    The documents below record these ideas, explains why they weren’t included as NAP5 commitments, and highlight related workstreams or initiatives outside the OGP context that address similar goals.   

    Reasoned responses following workshop consultation, published 14 November

    PDF: Reasoned response for potential OGP commitments(PDF, 116 KB)

    Word Doc: Reasoned response for potential OGP commitments(DOCX, 42 KB)

    Reasoned responses following draft plan consultation 

    PDF: OGP NAP5 Reasoned response plan consultation(PDF, 171 KB)

    Word doc: OGP NAP5 Reasoned response plan consultation(DOCX, 52 KB)

New Zealand’s Fourth National Action Plan (2023-2024)

The Fourth National Action Plan was developed from January to October 2022 and implemented from January 2023 to December 2024. The plan consisted of 8 commitments which included adopting a community engagement tool, implementing a National Counter Fraud and Corruption Strategy and establishing an inclusive, multi-channel approach to the delivery of government information and services.

New Zealand’s Third National Action Plan (2018-2021)

The Third National Action Plan was developed from January 2016 to 2017 and implemented from July 2018 to June 2021. It was then extended to December 2022 due to COVID-19. The plan consisted of 12 commitments which included publishing data on government-awarded contracts, reviewing government use of algorithms and making secondary legislation readily available.

New Zealand’s Second National Action Plan (2016-2018)

The Second National Action Plan was developed from January to June 2016 and implemented from July 2016 to June 2018. The plan consisted of 7 commitments which included creating guidance to improve policy practice, making budget information more accessible, tracking open government data releases.

New Zealand’s First National Action Plan (2014-2016)

The First National Action Plan was developed from January to June 2014 and implemented from July 2014 to June 2016. The plan consisted of 4 commitments which included assessing the Kia Tūtahi Relationship Accord and publishing the Government’s Response to Transparency International’s 2013 National Integrity System Assessment Report.