The long-awaited final version of the Model Law on Access to Information for Africa was posted April 12 on the website of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
The model law is “a common approach to a common problem” wrote Pansy Tlakula, the Special Rapporteur on Access to Information in Africa and Freedom of Expression.
She authored a preface in which she explained the need for the model law and the drafting process, conducted under her auspices and coordinated by the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria. A launch event was to have been held April 12 in The Gambia.
The model law was approved by the Commission in late February following a two and a half year drafting process that involved an expert group and public consultations. (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.)
Only 11 of 54 African nations have access laws, Tlakula observed, elaborating:
The access to information legislative landscape in Africa is thus sparse, with only 11 (Angola, Ethiopia, Guinea, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe) of the 54 African Union Member States having adopted access to information legislation, each with varied degrees of compliance with regional and international standards. Numerous States Parties also have access to information Bills, which are pending at various stages of the legislative process.
Tlakula described the need for access laws, saying:
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. By and large, these conditions exist throughout Africa, making the adoption of access to information legislation a common approach to a common problem.
“Member States may elect to adopt this Model Law as it is or adapt it,” Tlakula said.
The model law for Africa is tailored for African needs, she wrote:
In the absence of a regional legislative framework to guide the development of access to information legislation, States Parties have relied on access to information legislation developed in other jurisdictions in their adoption process. The result has been that many existing and draft access to information laws in Africa do not adequately take into consideration factors such as the poor record keeping culture and pervasive culture of secrecy within the public service in Africa, high levels of illiteracy and poverty, as well as limitations in respect of access to justice for most Africans. These factors are however a reality across Africa and must be addressed to ensure the effectiveness of any access to information legislation on the continent.
This Model Law thus aims to ensure that legislative drafters and policy-makers address all issues relevant to the African context in their adoption or review of access to information legislation. It also serves as a benchmark for measuring compliance with regional and international human rights standards in the adoption and review of access to information legislation by AU Member States.
She said the model law can support advocacy for transparency and be a source for best practices. She urged that the process of adopting access to information laws be done in an appropriately transparent manner.
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