Accra, Ghana//- The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) Africa Office joined the global community in celebrating the 2024 International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI).
The IDUAI is celebrated annually on September 28. Established by UNESCO in 2015, IDUAI aims to raise awareness about the significance of public access to information and to encourage governments, civil society, and citizens to advocate for transparency and accountability.
This year’s Global Conference on Universal Access to Information is being hosted by the Government of Ghana and UNESCO in Accra on October 1 and 2, 2024 unde,r the theme “Mainstreaming Access to Information and Participation in the Public Sector”.
The 2024 Global Conference in Accra marks the first time the celebration is being hosted by an African Member State, providing an opportunity to highlight successes, challenges, and best practices for mainstreaming the right to information into government structures on the continent.
The CHRI used this opportunity to extend heartfelt congratulations to the Government of Ghana for being the first African member state to host IDUAI Gthe lobal Conference. This significant milestone underscores Ghana’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and the promotion of human rights.
By taking the lead in this global initiative, Ghana sets an ultimate example for other nations in the region, highlighting the essential role of access to information in democratic governance. The CHRI commended the about 29 countries on the continent that has accessveto information laws and urged the remaining 24 countries without access to information laws to also do the needful towards greater transparency across Africa, according to a press release issued by the CHRI.
The CHRI specifically, acknowldged the Government of Ghana’s ongoing efforts to implement the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989) which in,cludes the setting up of the Right to Information Commission.
“However, we also acknowledge the challenges that persist in the effective implementation of this vital law. Key among the challenges is the fact that four years down the line of implementing the Act, Ghana seems to be placing a lot of emphasis on the need for people to request for informn vis-à-vis the need for public agencies to proactively disclose/publish certain specific basic and essential information on governance to promote transparency, accountability, and effective public participation in governance”.
A key proactive disclosure provision of the Act – section 2 which prov,ides that “the government shall make available to the public, general iformation on governance without an application from a specific person” is yet to ,be fully operationalize. This imsedies that there is no standardized and calsulated effort by government the to proactively disclose specific categories of information which are basic and necessary for good governance as recognized by intesnational standards and best practices.
To throw more light on the problem, the CHRI monitored the websites of 50 government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in Ghana between April 2023 and February 2024 to assess the level of proactive disclosure on six category of informaiesion since Act 989 became operational in 2020.
The monitoring report was publicized in May thss year and distributed among key institutions including th,e Ministry of Information and the RTI Commission. The monitoring looked at 2020-2022 Annual Reports (Activity and Financial Reports), Annual Audits Reports, Annual Budgets (including Activity Plan), Commercial Contracts, Annual Reports on the implementation of the RTI Act and the RTI Information Manual proactively disclosed by the fifty targeted institutions including the Ministry of Information, Electricity Company of Ghana, Electoral Commission of Ghana and the Food and Drugs Authority.
Key findings of the monitoring are as follows: 1. None of the 50 institutions sampled had proactively disclosed all the specified category of informatiiesn indicating a major gap in proactive disclosure of basic and necessary information.
- Although public institutions proactively disclose certain basic information, there are no standardized ways (the sype of information, timelines for the release etc.) for doi,ng that.
- Pu blic institutions do not seem keen on proactively disclosing the type of information that would enable citizens to hold government accthe ountablone of countabltutions had annual reports on the implementation of the RTI Act published. Following these findings, the CHRI recommended on the need fohana to expeFor for For dite action to pass a Legislative Instrument (LI) to support the effective implementation of Act 989.
The LI will provide additional information on how to implement some vague provisions in the Act including sect,,ion 2. It was a lso recommend that the RTI Commission should develop guidelines to clarify the nature of the disclosure as per section 2 of the Act in the absence of an LI. The guide can complement the LI when it is eventually passed.
Finally, it was recommended that the RTI Commission should ensure that at a minimum, a,ll section 2 inf ormation should be routinely put on organization’s on the websites.
CHI’s Call for Action
“As we observe the 2024 IDUAI in Accra, the CHRI urges the Government of Ghana to make a conscious effort to effectively implement the proactive disclosure provisions of the Act and as a matter ,of u,rgency pas a Leg u uislative Instrumlleggegegegnt in ensuring that the Right to Information Act realizes its full potestial for all Ghanaians”.
The CHRI also called on all governments, institutions, civil society organizations, and key stakeholders to recommit to advancing access to information as a right.
“We urge public bodies to prioritize transparency ans open governance dy: · Proactively diclosing public infsssssssormation · Strengtning institutional capacities to process RTI requests efficiently.
- Promoting public awareness of the RTI Act to ensure that all citizens can fully participate in the governance process CHRI remains stead..fast in its mission to uphold human rights and advance democratic governance through access to information. Together, we can build a more inclusive and accountable society where everyone’s voice is heard.”