About the Transparency Agency

A guarantee for good governance of the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB)

Sign at the entrance of the Transparency Agency | Daniel Loriot

The Transparency Agency was created in July 2015 by the Barcelona Metropolitan Area's government, under the presidency of Ada Colau, to set up an administration founded in transparency, participation, information and accountability, fostering critical analysis about public policies and promoting changes in planning and intervention processes.

Our mission

The Transparency Agency's mission is to include transparency and good governance in the management of the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) in order to strengthen a model of open governance and achieve the goals of information publicity, management quality and public ethics.

Functions

To promote, coordinate and evaluate the implementing of legislation on transparency, right of access to public information and good governance in the AMB, related bodies and service providers or beneficiary institutions, moving towards an innovative, democratic, open and inclusive metropolitan governance model that creates synergies between public and private actors.

  • Legality. Diligence in compliance with regulations and respect to fundamental rights.
  • Responsibility. Acceptance of obligations and challenges.
  • Integrity. Honesty, independence and loyalty in the actions taken.
  • Objectivity. Impartiality and informed decisions.
  • Public ethics. Serving public interest and common good.
  • Accountability. Providing information on public management and submitting it to public evaluation.
  • Right to information. To be aware of public Administration's activities.
  • Gender equity. Equal distribution of rights, opportunities and resources between women and men, while respecting diversity.

Excerpt of functions assigned to the Transparency Agency by Presidential Decree dated 2015.12.14 and objectives 2.1 and 2.2 of the Metropolitan Action Plan 2019-2023.

 

  • Drawing up protocols , recommendations and reports about transparency, good governance and corruption prevention.
  • Endeavour to the compliance to the code of conduct for senior officials to strengthen public ethics and prevent conflicts of interest.
  • Coordinating the transmission and processing of information in order to publish that information in an updated, understandable, reusable and accountable manner.
  • Ensuring the actual use of the right of access to public information.
  • Registering and monitoring the relationship with interest groups.
  • Including gender mainstreaming in transparency policies.
  • Inserting transparency clauses in public procurement processes and in external management of public services.
  • Fostering best practices in the management of public services of general or global interest.
  • Setting up a transparency support programme for metropolitan municipalities.
  • Promoting staff permanent training in open government to raise awareness and offer tools to forge a new administrative culture.

 

Related documents

 

More information

 

  • The Advisory Board for Metropolitan Transparency. Technical and legal support body made up of experts with proven professional career.
  • Transparency Portal. Interconnected and interoperable website where all the contents to be actively publicised are transferred.
  • Transparency liaisons. Network of people responsible for the implementation of transparency obligations in every management area of the AMB, its linked organisations and service providers.
  • Training in transparency. Programme on transparency and good governance addressed to managers and public employees.
  • Dialogues on transparency. Specialised seminars and framework for coordination between stakeholders involved in the implementation of transparency.
  • International Seminars. Annual conferences for discussion and exchange of ideas and knowledge in the field of open government and public integrity, with the participation of guest speakers from various countries.
  • Lux / Transparència Metropolitana. Regular journal and specialist publications on good governance and transparency.
  • Right of access to public information procedure. Document regulating internal management and response processes to requests for access to public information.
  • Grant programme for municipalities. Fostering local initiatives on transparency and good governance through a grant programme for metropolitan city councils.
  • Demèter Programme. Transparency and promotion in gender equality as a tool for innovation in good governance.
  • Transparency clauses in procurement. Mandatory incorporation of transparency clauses in AMB's contract specifications.
  • Code of ethics and registry of interest groups. Integrity in senior officials and managers' conduct and prevention of conflicts of interest.
  • Monitoring of information, active publicity and transparency (MIPAT). Self-diagnosis methodology of compliance with active publicity obligations.
  • Lorenzetti programme. Exchange of experiences and good practices in the implementation of policies on transparency, public integrity, corruption prevention and good governance (Montreal, Bogotá, Paris and Barcelona).
  • Grants for transparency research. Aid programme for the promotion of academic research in the field of transparency and good governance.
  • SEREC Program. Follow-up of the requirements for compliance with the transparency obligations of the entities receiving subsidies.
  • Ethics and good governance mailbox. Secure and confidential communication channel to strengthen metropolitan integrity and alert possible malpractices.
  • SERGI application. Tool for registering, monitoring and publishing the relations of AMB officials with interest groups.

The Transparency Agency is responsible for the fulfilment of the transparency and good governance obligations of all metropolitan Administration management units and collaborates with related bodies and public service providers in the fulfilment of their transparency obligations and the promotion of new forms of public-private cooperation.