France becomes first national government to endorse UN Open Source Principles, joins 19 other organizations
The French government has become the first central government to endorse the United Nations Open Source Principles, a set of open source guidelines adopted by
France Becomes First Government to Endorse UN Open Source Principles, Joined by 19 Organizations | Le Bureau de L'informatique et des Communications
https://unite.un.org/fr/news/france-becomes-first-government-endorse-un-open-source-principles-joined-19-organizations
In a May 19, 2025 Mastodon post, code.gouv.fr , an FOSS project of the French Interministerial Directorate General for Digital (DINUM), which promotes cooperation and coordination in the field of information and communications systems among French government ministries, reported that 'France has become the first government to endorse the UN Open Source Principles, with 19 organizations joining the initiative.'
The UN Open Source Principles are guidelines adopted by the Digital Technology Network (DTN) , a UN agency that promotes cooperation in the digital and technology fields, to promote cooperation and adoption of open source technology within the United Nations and globally. Open Source United, a community of practice established by DTN, works to advance open source technology across UN agencies, funds and programs.
The UN Open Source Principles consist of the following eight principles:
1: Open by default : Make open source the standard approach for projects.
2: Contribute and give back ...Encourage active participation in open source.
3: Secure by Design - Prioritize security in all software and projects.
4: Promote inclusive participation and community building : Enable and encourage diverse and inclusive contributions to open source.
5: Design for reusability - Design your projects to be interoperable across different platforms and ecosystems.
6: Provide documentation - Provide thorough documentation for end users, organizational leaders, and developers.
7: RISE (Recognition, Incentives, Support, Empowerment) - Enabling individuals and communities to actively participate.
8: Sustainability and scale-up – supporting the development of solutions that meet evolving needs, both within and beyond the UN system.
Alongside the French government, 19 other organizations have also endorsed the UN Open Source Principles, including Creative Commons, the Mercedes-Benz Group, the WordPress Foundation , and the Senckenberg Natural History Society .
France's support for the UN Open Source Principles has also been a hot topic on the social news site Hacker News.
France Endorses UN Open Source Principles | Hacker News
One user said that for two years he has been working on a government project to create, distribute and manage ID keys for all buildings in France, with the goal of opening up the data and allowing government agencies, cities, businesses and citizens to write directly to the registry, improving the interoperability of the database.
'This is pretense, no substance,' said another user,
