Godfred Kuttin is a Co-founder and Deputy Executive Director of the Youth Initiative Foundation, a youth-led and focused organization committed to advancing LGBTQIA+ rights, gender equality, youth empowerment, and fostering Open Governance for more inclusive societies. With a diverse background encompassing Marine Science and certifications in digital technologies and training, Godfred harnesses digital tools to drive human rights advocacy.
Somewhere between Bilbao and Accra, as the lights of Spain faded beneath the clouds, I found myself listening to Tom Odell’s “Jubilee Road.” It played softly through my headphones, and somehow, every word carried a kind of familiarity. A quiet sense of reflection, resilience, belonging, unfinished stories, and hope. Odell wrote about a street filled with neighbours and everyday lives that intertwined.
As I listened, I thought about the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Global Summit I had just attended in Vitoria-Gasteiz, and how, in many ways, the open governance community feels like that street: a place of shared ideals, imperfect realities, and the search for belonging.
To me, Jubilee Road became more than a song. It became a metaphor for the journey toward inclusion. The OGP, like that road, is lined with promises and conversations, yet also with silences, especially for LGBTQIA+ youth like myself. As I walked through the sessions, hearing calls for transparency, accountability, and youth co-creation, I couldn’t help but notice the quiet absence of LGBTQIA+ representation in our discussions about openness.
The Silence in the Room
Representing the Youth Initiative Foundation and as part of the Youth Democracy Cohort delegation, I arrived at the Summit with a deep sense of hope. I met passionate young leaders and listened to policymakers committed to building more accountable democracies. Yet in those same rooms, I often felt an echoing silence, one that many LGBTQIA+ youth would recognize. While we spoke about inclusion, few spoke for us.
According to recent OGP data, fewer than 10% of member countries globally have made explicit commitments to LGBTQIA+ inclusion in their national action plans, and none from Africa so far. This gap reflects a broader hesitation that prevents openness from becoming universal. Many African delegates, despite their passion for democracy, carefully distanced themselves from LGBTQIA+ issues, a reflection of how deeply moral and cultural narratives still shape policy discourse across the continent.
In Ghana, for instance, the ‘Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values’ Bill (recently reintroduced to Parliament) shows how policy is often defined by moral exclusion, not democratic inclusion. For LGBTQIA+ youth and advocates, this moment underscores why inclusion in open governance spaces cannot be delayed. It is not just a matter of policy, but of protection and survival.
Down on Jubilee Road
Our journey, like the symbolic Jubilee Road, is far from over. But every conversation, every act of openness, and every young person who refuses to be silent moves us one step closer to that shared home where equality is not conditional and belonging is not debated. Openness is a road we walk together.
If we truly believe in the spirit of open government, then inclusion cannot be conditional. The next phase of OGP must move beyond rhetoric to measurable commitments.
OGP should require member states to disaggregate participation data by marginalized groups, including LGBTQIA+ individuals, in their National Action Plan reporting. What gets measured gets addressed. Without this visibility, we cannot track progress or hold governments accountable for truly inclusive co-creation processes.
Concrete examples already exist and should be actively promoted. Argentina’s 2021 National Action Plan included specific commitments to improve access to public services for transgender individuals. Uruguay integrated anti-discrimination commitments based on sexual orientation and gender identity. OGP should support the replication of these models across member countries, particularly in regions where such commitments are currently absent.
OGP should also formalize partnerships with established LGBTQIA+ networks that can provide expertise and support. Organizations like ILGA World, Pan Africa ILGA, and OutRight International have decades of experience working with governments on inclusive policy development. By integrating these actors into co-creation processes through advisory roles, technical assistance, or direct participation in National Action Plan development, member states gain access to proven frameworks and lived experience.
Civil society partners within OGP networks must create safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ youth participation. This means not just inviting us to the table, but ensuring protection from discrimination, providing resources for meaningful engagement, and amplifying our voices in decision-making processes.
LGBTQIA+ youth across Africa and beyond deserve more than recognition; they deserve representation. Let the next chapter of open government be one where every voice, especially the most marginalized, helps write the story of transparency and transformation.
Because until every citizen, regardless of identity, can walk Jubilee Road without fear or exclusion, the journey toward openness will remain incomplete.
Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of the YDC or its members.