The paradox of the right to information law in Africa

Adu, Kofi Osei

doi:10.1016/j.giq.2018.10.003

Cited by 24 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 26 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Free access to information legislation is a key element in promoting transparency. A few African countries enacted FOI legislation to legally provide access to information to citizens, including Angola, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Rwanda, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Uganda(Sebina 2007;Adu 2018). However, FOI is pointless unless the information sought is well managed and easily accessible to citizens.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of records management in ensuring good governance in Africa

Mosweu

Rakemane²

2020

J. South Afr. Soc. Archiv.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Proper records management is central to the promotion of good governance. Africa is a continent which has generally been riddled with poor governance. Principles of good governance such as accountability, transparency and the rule of law are ascertained with available records. Poor records management practices promote bad economic practices such as corruption and fraud. An assessment of the performance of government can thus be realised through proper records management and access to information. Good records management practices therefore lead to good governance and vice versa; thus, the role of records management in promoting good governance cannot be overemphasised. However, there are some likely impediments that may hinder the promotion of good governance through records management in the African context. This paper explored the role played by records management in ensuring good governance in Africa. It then suggests strategies to promote good governance through proper records management practices. The paper contends that outdated archival laws, backlog of unprocessed records and absence of access to information laws in some African countries are the major impediments to the promotion of good governance. The paper recommends an amendment of outdated laws and the promulgation of access to information legislation as major initiatives, among others, which put records management in the forefront of promoting good governance in the continent.

show abstract

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of records management in ensuring good governance in Africa

Mosweu

Rakemane²

2020

J. South Afr. Soc. Archiv.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…While several of the African Union's (AU) 54 member states have laws pending for access to information, only 20 have enacted such laws as reflected in annexure B. The pace of enactment of FOI laws has been remarkable, with the number of national laws increasing from 19 mostly Western democracies in 1.995 to over 100 laws in all regions of the world by 2018 (Adu 2018). Sebina (2006) notes that despite the differences in the nomenclature, the underlying conception and purpose of the concept has remained the same.…”

Section: Brief Background Of Access To Informationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite the rapid pace of enactment of FOI laws, there are widespread problems with implementation in many of these countries, such as requests being ignored (Adu 2018) or records not being properly managed (Dominy 2017). In other countries, the law itself is not as far-reaching as might be desired by civil society.…”

Section: Brief Background Of Access To Informationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most government entities in these countries are subject to FOI laws that permit public and, in some countries, private access to records in the organisation's custody or under their control (Kozak 2015). However, as Adu (2018) would attest, in Africa, these pieces of legislation are not without problems. For example, despite the availability of FOI laws in 20 African countries (refer to annexure B for the list of African countries that have enacted FOI legislation), implementation is still a challenge as some countries use the laws as a way to continue the practice of secrecy and corruption, while other countries grant mute refusals to requesters (Adu 2018).…”

Section: Introduction and Background To The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, as Adu (2018) would attest, in Africa, these pieces of legislation are not without problems. For example, despite the availability of FOI laws in 20 African countries (refer to annexure B for the list of African countries that have enacted FOI legislation), implementation is still a challenge as some countries use the laws as a way to continue the practice of secrecy and corruption, while other countries grant mute refusals to requesters (Adu 2018). Adu (2013) observes that failure to implement the FOI law effectively also remains a great concern in the African region.…”

Section: Introduction and Background To The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Compliance with freedom of information legislation by public bodies in South Africa

Nkwe

Ngoepe

2021

Government Information Quarterly

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In South Africa, freedom of information (FOI) or the right of access to information (ATI) is entrenched in section 32 of the Constitution. Section 32 guarantees every citizen the right of access to any information held by the state or held by any other person that is to be used for the protection or exercise of any right. The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) is the law that gives effect to section 32 of the Constitution. Regardless of a remarkable trend towards the adoption of FOI laws globally, international trends have shown this does not automatically translate into fulfilment of people's right to information, as access to information by citizens remains a challenging factor. This study utilised mixed method research through the explanatory sequential design to assess compliance with FOI legislation by public bodies in South Africa with the view to ensure transparency, accountability and good governance. In this regard, the study first conducted a quantitative study by analysing the reports of the South African Human Rights Commission from the reporting years 2006/07 to 2016/07 to assess compliance with sections 14, 17 and 32 of the PAIA. The compliance trends were identified and thereafter a qualitative study was conducted to answer the question why the situation was the way it was. In this regard, interviews were conducted with a purposively chosen sample from complying and non-complying public bodies. The targeted participants were records managers, deputy information officers or officials responsible for PAIA in each chosen public body. The mixing strategy for the current study was at the data analysis, presentation and reporting level. Key results suggest that over the years, there were problems in the implementation of the FOI legislation in South Africa and its use was limited.Where implementation has taken place, it has been partial and inconsistent. The responsibility for implementation of FOI legislation in most public bodies is assigned to legal departments that do not have knowledge of what records are created, where and how they are kept. With regard to compliance, in terms of the degree of comparison, the situation was better in national departments, worse in provincial departments (with full compliance from the Free State, Limpopo, Western Cape and, to some extent, KwaZulu-Natal) and worst in municipalities. The study recommends the establishment of an information governance unit to implement FOI in public bodies. This unit will also be responsible for other information functions such as records management and information technology. Failure to assign responsibility to a relevant unit would perpetuate the non-compliance with FOI legislation in South Africa. As a result, accountability, transparency and good governance preached by the public sector to advance democracy in South Africa would be a mirage. A model for the implementation of PAIA within a public body is suggested.

show abstract

Open government and the right to information: Implications for transparency and accountability in Asia

Zafarullah

Siddiquee

2021

Public Admin & Development

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Many countries inAsia have recently been following the global trend by introducing the right to information (RTI) law to build open and accountable government systems. This article compares the implementation of such law in four countries in the Asian region (India, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Thailand) to assess how they have produced outcomes supporting open government (OG) goals. Drawing on an extensive review of the conceptual literature, secondary sources and official publications, it shows that, notwithstanding many promising features, RTI laws have performed poorly within the overarching notion of OG. Implementation has suffered from numerous deficits and challenges implicating both the demand and supply-side actors-those who seek information and those who are mandated to provide information under the law. Such challenges, together with an inherent flaw, deviation from rules, technical blunders and bureaucratic indifference and noncompliance, have rendered the RTI law mostly ineffective. The paper highlights current deficits/snags and underscores the imperative of raising the awareness and capacity at both community and official levels and creating a culture where transparency and openness is valued over secrecy and confidentiality. This would require strong political commitment, selfless bureaucratic support and genuine citizen engagement.

show abstract

The paradox of the right to information law in Africa

Cited by 24 publications

References 26 publications

The role of records management in ensuring good governance in Africa

The role of records management in ensuring good governance in Africa

Compliance with freedom of information legislation by public bodies in South Africa

Open government and the right to information: Implications for transparency and accountability in Asia

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About