How to Build an Open-Source Program Office
Date issued
June 2026
Subject
Digital Technology;
Open Source;
Governance;
Procurement;
Digital Economy;
Public Sector;
Computer Software;
Infrastructure Development;
Stakeholder Ecosystem;
Public Institution;
Competitiveness;
Digital Transformation;
Service Provider;
Sustainability;
Innovation
JEL code
H11 - Structure, Scope, and Performance of Government;
D83 - Search • Learning • Information and Knowledge • Communication • Belief • Unawareness;
O33 - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences • Diffusion Processes;
H83 - Public Administration • Public Sector Accounting and Audits
Category
Catalogs and Brochures
Open-source refers to software whose source code is publicly available for use, modification, and redistribution. Open-source software (OSS) has increasingly positioned itself as a powerful lever to enhance the impact of public investment. As more public institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) position open-source as a strategic pillar of their digital transformation agendas, demand for concrete operational guidance on how to govern and sustain OSS adoption over the long term continues to grow.
Open-Source Program Offices (OSPOs) can set the rules, lower the friction, and build capacity so that public institutions can safely use, publish, and contribute to OSS at scale. They can, according to the institutions needs, coordinate policy and strategy, ensure legal and procurement compliance, set technical and security standards, and engage communities and ecosystems so that agencies can safely reuse and contribute to OSS (Linux Foundation Research, 2022).
This document outlines a step-by-step roadmap for establishing and maturing the strategy and core functions of an Open-Source Program Office (OSPO). Its methodology reflects the IDBs operational experience, referenced publications, lessons from interviews with the global opensource ecosystem, and outputs from the roundtable session “Collective Mentorship: Establishing & Sustaining Government OSPOs” held at the Digital Public Goods Alliance Annual Member Meeting in November 2025. The methodology for establishing an OSPO strategy offers a robust framework for replication across institutions and follows the Mission Model Canvas structure: from Desirability (value and beneficiaries) to Feasibility (capabilities and structures), and ultimately to Viability (long-term sustainability). A phased maturity model then provides a practical path for implementation, enabling any government, regardless of its starting point, to deliver early results and progressively expand its capabilities.
Open-Source Program Offices (OSPOs) can set the rules, lower the friction, and build capacity so that public institutions can safely use, publish, and contribute to OSS at scale. They can, according to the institutions needs, coordinate policy and strategy, ensure legal and procurement compliance, set technical and security standards, and engage communities and ecosystems so that agencies can safely reuse and contribute to OSS (Linux Foundation Research, 2022).
This document outlines a step-by-step roadmap for establishing and maturing the strategy and core functions of an Open-Source Program Office (OSPO). Its methodology reflects the IDBs operational experience, referenced publications, lessons from interviews with the global opensource ecosystem, and outputs from the roundtable session “Collective Mentorship: Establishing & Sustaining Government OSPOs” held at the Digital Public Goods Alliance Annual Member Meeting in November 2025. The methodology for establishing an OSPO strategy offers a robust framework for replication across institutions and follows the Mission Model Canvas structure: from Desirability (value and beneficiaries) to Feasibility (capabilities and structures), and ultimately to Viability (long-term sustainability). A phased maturity model then provides a practical path for implementation, enabling any government, regardless of its starting point, to deliver early results and progressively expand its capabilities.
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