One of the founding principles of good governance is that government institutions operate in an open and transparent manner an that they lead by example. The Dutch government has acted on this by adopting a code of conduct containing its guiding principles for good governance. This code aims to contribute to further improving confidence by Dutch citizens in public administration.

The guiding principles contained in the code are a translation of existing legislation and regulations, including the General Principles of Good Governance. It is not intended to replace the existing regulatory framework: it rather serves as a moral appeal to the government to behave responsibly. All government institutions are invited to adopt the code and to live up to its principles in their every day activities. This is therefore a voluntary choice. Once an institution decides to commit itself to the code on good governance, it can be held accountable to it, for example by regulating bodies and inspectorates. The Council of State will be asked to periodically review the efforts made by the various government institutions on implementing the code and keeping it viable.

The code contains the following guiding principles:
- Transparency and integrity;
- Participation;
- Proper contact with citizens;
- Result-orientedness and efficiency;
- Legitimacy;
- Learning orientedness and self-cleaning capacity;
- Accountability.

For more information (in Dutch), please go  here.