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19 September 2013
Guyana’s Access to Information Act No. 21 of 2011 entered into force on July 10, 2013, a Guyana official has informed FreedomInfo.org. Guyana is the 95th country with a freedom of information regime. The effective date was provided by an official in the Guyana embassy in Washington, clearing up a bit of ambiguity about whether […]
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5 August 2013
Former Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Justice Charles Ramson was sworn in July 15 as Commissioner of Information by President Donald Ramotar. The Commissioner of Information post was created by the Access to Information Act of 2011, passed in September 2011. The appointment of the commissioner is another step toward implementation of the law, […]
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10 June 2013
The president of Guyana has appointed a former attorney general, Charles Ramson Sr., as the first  Commissioner of Information under the 2011 Access to Information Act. The mid-May appointment by President Donald Ramotar would appear to be step toward putting the law into effect, although it remains unclear if that is the case. Under the […]
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25 March 2013
A Caribbean network on freedom of information was created at a conference held recently in Kingston, Jamaica. Governments, civil society, and media announced plans to launch the Caribbean network “to support processes to improve standards for access to information in the region,” according to a statement. Representatives from 11 Caribbean countries attended a two-day “Regional Conference on Freedom of […]
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21 March 2013
A key minister in Guyana has said the access to information law passed September of 2011 may be implemented by the end of 2013, according to a March 20 article by Denis Scott Chabrol in Demarara Waves quoting Presidential Advisor on Governance, Gail Teixeira. The law does not go into effect until an information commissioner […]
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8 February 2013
The 16–month-old Guyana freedom of information law is not yet operational and the lag-time is getting more attention. The government has yet to declare the law in effect and appoint an information commissioner, the steps that trigger the law’s implementation, according to persons familiar with the process. The law was passed Sept. 15, 2011 and […]
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27 April 2012
The Guyana access to information law, signed into law seven months ago, is still not in effect. The text of law, although not apparently available on official government websites, has been provided to FreedomInfo.org. The Guyana National Assembly passed the access to information bill Sept. 15, despite criticisms by local transparency activists. (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.) President […]
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19 September 2011
The Guyana National Assembly Sept. 15 passed an access to information bill drafted in meetings boycotted by the opposition and being criticized by transparency activists. President Bharrat Jagdeo is expected to sign the bill in the coming months, according to an Associated Press report. Prime Minister Samuel Hinds told the Assembly that 20 of the […]
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20 June 2011
The Guyana government has proposed a long-promised freedom of information bill in the National Assembly. The bill was referred a special select committee, according to media accounts such as one in Demerara Waves. Demerara Waves reported: Friday’s introduction was the first time the opposition parties were seeing the bill and AFC’s Sheila Holder said they […]
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7 March 2011
Unfulfilled government promises to offer an access to information bill is frustrating supporters of more transparency in Guyana, according to articles in Kaieteur News. The Alliance for Change was organizing picketing on March 3 because of the delay, according to one report. Government officials, including Head of State Bharrat Jagdeo, have said that the bill […]
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24 November 2010
Expectations that a freedom of information bill would be introduced this year in Guyana may go unfulfilled while discussions continue on the substance of the measure. In early November, a top government spokesman said FOI legislation could be offered in the Guyana parliament this year. (See previous Freedominfo.org report.) The Leader of the Alliance for […]
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5 November 2010
Freedom of information legislation could be offered in the Guyana parliament this year, according to chief government spokesman, Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon, as quoted in The Stabroek News. Briefing the media Nov. 3 at his weekly post-Cabinet news conference he said it would be tabled long before the current parliamentary session ends in August. […]
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9 January 2010
After an opaque review process, the International Monetary Fund January 8 announced modest changes to its disclosure policy, but retained the major impediment to disclosure, allowing governments to prevent release of documents pertaining to their countries. This power prevents the release of more than 10 percent of some of the most important documents about countries. […]
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6 October 2005
The International Monetary Fund has taken steps that may reduce the number of deletions made in the publicly disclosed versions of its key reports about member countries, including the significant Article IV reports. The moves come after an internal report found that more than one-third of the published reports “incorporate substantive changes” as a result […]
