High-Level Panel on Advancing Access to Information in Government Institutions and the Role of Civil Society
Keynote Address:
Commissioner Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo
Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
Tuesday 01 October 2024
ACCRA, GHANA
- Distinguished Guests;
- Ladies and Gentlemen;
- All Protocols respectively observed.
It is my singular honour to participate in, and deliver the key note address during this Panel discussion on ‘Advancing Access to Information in Government Institutions and the Role of Civil Society.’ At the outset, allow me to extend my sincere thanks to the Government of the Republic of Ghana, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and its partners, for inviting me to participate in this Conference and panel discussion.
Allow me to introduce myself – I am Commissioner Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo, a member of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the Commission) and the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa (the Special Rapporteur). This special mechanism was established by the Commission twenty years ago, in 2004, through adoption of Resolution ACHPR/Res.71(XXXIV)03 during the 36th Ordinary Session in December 2004, which mandated a ‘focal person’ within the Commission to oversee the implementation of Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Accordingly, I am honoured to participate in this Conference, as we also commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Commission’s special mechanism on freedom of expression and access to information in Africa.
Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen;
Access to information is universally recognized as a foundational requirement of the practice of democratic governance. In any society, access to information is key for the empowerment of citizens, in addition to the effective functioning of a transparent Government. Specifically, the right to access information facilitates transparency and accountability of public services.
Equally, it goes without saying that access to information is crucially important to the work of journalists and other media practitioners, in addition to civil society organizations, who monitor the actions of Government, or other private actors, to ensure transparency, reduce corruption and power abuse. Limiting and restricting access to timely and credible information has a detrimental impact on the work of journalists, as it impacts the information that they convey to the public. Lack of access to information can also have the effect of contributing to misinformation and disinformation, leading to the mistrust of journalists and other media practitioners.
As succinctly noted in the Commission’s Model Law on Access to Information for Africa, “lack of access to information deprives citizens of their right to participate in the decision-making process and hold elected representatives accountable for their acts or omissions and creates an environment in which corruption, maladministration and mismanagement of national resources may thrive.”
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen;
In recognition of the importance of this right, the African Union and its Member States have adopted several regional treaties which, in one form or another, call on States to prioritise the adoption of access to information legislation. In addition to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Charter), which provides in Article 9(1) that “every individual shall have the right to receive information,” the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, the African Charter on the Values and Principles of Public Service and Administration, the African Youth Charter, the African Charter on Statistics and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (the Maputo Protocol), also recognise the importance of the right of access to information.
In addition to these normative frameworks in Africa, the Commission has adopted a number of soft law documents which expand on the scope of the right to access information. The aim of these soft law documents is to elaborate on the rights enshrined in Article 9 of the African Charter, bringing together regional and international standards to ensure their promotion and protection.
First, the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression, which was adopted by the Commission in 2002, provides, Principle IV(1) that “public bodies hold information not for themselves but as custodians of the public good and everyone has a right to access this information, subject only to clearly defined rules established by law.”
The Commission then expand on this soft law document by adopting the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa (2019), which dedicated Part III to the ‘right of access to information,’ and includes eleven Principles on this specific right. The first principle in this section, Principle 26 provides the following:
“a. Every person has the right to access information held by public bodies and relevant private bodies expeditiously and inexpensively.
b. Every person has the right to access information of private bodies that may assist in the exercise or protection of any right expeditiously and inexpensively.”
Another soft law document adopted by the Commission is the Guidelines on Access to Information and Elections in Africa (2017), which highlights the importance of the right of access to information in creating a conducive environment for free, fair and transparent elections. As an example, Article 2(2) of the Guidelines provide the following:
“(c) Any policy or practice creating a right of access to information shall be interpreted and applied on the basis of a duty to disclose. Non-disclosure shall be permitted only in exceptionally justifiable circumstances.”
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen;
You will agree with me that a normative framework to ensure the right to access information exists in Africa. As the discussions in this Panel focus on advancing access to information in Government institutions and the role of Civil Society, I propose that the discussion should focus on how to ensure the effective implementation of this right.
In order to enhance implementation of the right of access to information, the Commission, and the office of the Special Rapporteur, has consistently prioritized advocating for the adoption of national legislation on access to information by the AU Member States, as a means of guaranteeing this right. This is in line with Article 1 of the African Charter which requires States Parties to adopt legislative, or other measures to give effect to the rights, duties and freedoms enshrined therein.
It is for this reason that my able predecessor, Adv. Pansy Tlakula, the former Special Rapporteur, visited the Republic of Ghana in July 2014 in order to advocate for adoption of the long-stalled right to information bill. As you are all now aware, the Parliament of Ghana subsequently passed the Right to Information Act, 2019 (ACT 989) in 2019, which was the assented to by the President in the same year. I would like to take this opportunity to commend Ghana and all other African States in Africa which have prioritized adoption of national legislation in order to ensure the right to access information.
In view of the fact, however, that several African countries have not yet adopted laws on access to information, or where they exist the law may not conform to regional and international standards, the Commission adopted the Model Law on Access to Information for Africa in 2013, in light of the apparent need for normative standards to guide Member States in their development and adoption of access to information laws in fulfillment of their obligations under the African Charter.
The purpose of this Model Law is to facilitate the adoption of national legislation on access to information by States in Africa by providing a detailed set of provisions which represent international, regional or sub-regional standards on the right of access to information. The Commission consistently encourages States Parties to refer to its Model Law when drafting or reviewing national access to information legislation.
Some of the key provisions of the Model law include the following:
i. The right to access information is guaranteed to everyone within the State, it is not restricted to citizens.
ii. The requirement to disclose information is applicable to public bodies, private bodies, and ‘relevant private bodies’ which are private bodies that are owned, controlled or financed through public funds, or which are performing a public function or service.
iii. Information holders are required to create, organise and keep information.
iv. Public institutions are mandated to proactively disclose a wide range of information contained in the law.
v. Requests for information can be made in writing but also orally, in which case the information officer must assist the requester to reduce the request into writing.
vi. No fees are payable for accessing information, only the cost of reproduction of the requested information, and where the information is requested by an indigent person, the reproduction fee is to be waived.
vii. The 48-hour rule on information disclosure - where information requested is for the purpose of safeguarding the life or liberty of a person, it must be provided within 48 hours.
Last, but not least, the Model law includes an entire section, Part V, to the establishment of an Oversight Mechanism, which is the independent official or body responsible for monitoring implementation of the national law on access to information, in order to ensure its effective implementation.
During this Conference, we are scheduled to hear from a number of ‘Information Commissioners’ who are responsible for monitoring implementation of the respective access to information legislation in their jurisdictions, and I am eager to hear from this key demographic on how we can collectively support their very important role.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen;
When properly implemented, access to information legislation can cultivate good governance by improving information management, in addition to enhancing transparency, accountability and greater participation in public affairs. Undoubtedly, the exposure of corruption, maladministration and mismanagement of resources, increased transparency and accountability are key ingredients which contribute to improved management of public resources and the enjoyment of a host of rights.
I would like to take this opportunity to call for greater commitment to the right of access to information. This includes through adoption of national legislation to ensure the right, to the establishment of independent oversight mechanisms to monitor effective implementation of the law, and increased efforts to sensitize the public on this important right.
Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen;
During commemoration of this year’s International Day for Universal Access to Information, which coincides with the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Commission’s special mechanism on freedom of expression and access to information in Africa being celebrated in 2024, in addition to the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the Model Law in 2023, my office has partnered with FesMedia Africa, to develop a Commemorative Newsletter of the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa. This Newsletter brings together a number of articles written by former Rapporteurs of the Commission, in addition to articles from the perspective of Civil Society and journalists.
As you participate in this Conference, in commemoration of the global call for universal access to information, it is my pleasure to launch this Newsletter in this august assembly, in the hope that the issues discussed will contribute to greater awareness of the right of access to information, and the role of the Commission and other actors in facilitating the right.
In closing, as you discuss the topic of advancing access to information in Government institutions and the role of civil society, allow me to encourage you to take cognizance of the efforts which have been undertaken the Commission, and its special mechanism, to enhance implementation of this right. Additionally, I sincerely hope that the soft law documents which I highlighted, will contribute to your understanding of the right and how we can collectively work to ensure that the right is promoted and protected. These soft law documents can be accessed on the Commission’s website in four AU languages.
Thank you for your kind attention, and I wish you fruitful deliberations during this Panel, and in the Conference.
Hon. Commissioner Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo,
Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression & Access to Information
