African countries are “only halfway towards where they should be in terms of access to information, according to a new report.
The report evaluated 14 countries using a survey of experts. The average score was 5 out of 10, “not quite a pass mark,” the report said.
Only four of the countries have specific access to information laws (Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe). See full report and summary. The report did not cover Liberia and Rwanda, which have access laws of recent vintage.
Malawi was the top ranked about the 14 countries examined: Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gambia, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The report was done by the Open Democracy Advice Centre, African Platform on Access to Information (APAI) Campaign and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (through fesmedia Africa).
The snapshot has one-page graphics summarizing the access situation in the countries examined.
The announcement says, “The research comes to a straightforward conclusion: if access to information advocates want to truly forward access to information in Africa, they must work through their research to identify “where the gap is.”
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