The Access to Public Information Laws: conditions for its implementation

conditions for its implementation

Abstract

The implementation of the access to information laws
is a complex process. This article presents the different measures to take in order to make the legal provisions operational and ensure its effective implementation: creation of an oversight body responsible for ensuring compliance with the law, hearing appeals against refusals of requests for information and advising the agencies; promotion of the law among the NGOs and medias, and raising awareness of the general public on its new rights;  initial and continuous training for the public officials in charge of the implementation; establishment of the procedures aiming to facilitate the requests and their processing; reforms of records and data management practices, and proactive publication; regular evaluation of the implementation progresses by the body responsible for the monitoring.
Examples of good practices illustrate these measures: they come from the case studies published by the World Bank on the implementation of the right to information, in particular in Mexico, India and the United Kingdom. The implementation of the law requires the continuous support of the government to
the bodies in charge of it and the engagement of the civil society.