Search Results
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17 December 2012
Kenyan Minister Looks to Compel Publication of Data
The minister responsible for Kenya’s open data portal says government agencies are failing to supply necessary data, according to a report by in The Sunday Nation. “Information and Communications permanent secretary Bitange Ndemo told the Sunday Nation that the ministry was getting frustrated because of the low amount of data supplied by organizations,” according to […]
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25 May 2012
Progress Slow on Drafting FOI Legislation in Kenya
Kenya’s Constitutional Implementation Commission is continuing to draft a freedom of information bill and a data protection bill, but the process is taking longer than expected. “Too long, “ observed one person close to the process in a note to FreedomInfo.org. Once approved by the commission, the bills must be approved by the Cabinet and […]
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12 March 2012
Kenyan Court Limits Access Right to Citizens
The High Court in Kenya court has ruled that the right to information as provided for under section 35 of the Constitution is reserved only for Kenyan “citizens,” not for corporations or other entities. The court March 2 denied a request by an Indian company for documents from two Kenyan government agencies concerning a contract […]
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27 January 2012
Kenyan Draft FOI Bill Subject to More Review
The Kenyan Constitutional Implementation Commission has asked for further modifications of a draft freedom of information law, according to an expert who attended the meeting. A few issues proved contentious and a technical committee was asked to seek further submissions from stakeholders and to make further recommendations. Below are the main provisions on which the […]
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25 November 2011
FOI Notes: Latin America, Kenya, U.S., Nigeria, More
Latin American: “Supreme Audit Agencies in Latin America: Report on Transparency, Participation and Accountability,” a report in English and Spanish coordinated by Asociacion Civil por la Igualdad y la Justicia. Kenya: Global Integrity has a new report out “a bottom-up scorecard of transparency, anti-corruption and accountability efforts in Kenya’s three largest cities – Kisumu, Mombasa […]
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16 November 2011
Kenya Begins Process of Developing FOI Legislation
Kenya, with a newly minted constitutional provision guaranteeing access to information, is moving toward the development of a law to implement the right. Consideration of a freedom of information bill and a data protection bill has been started by the Constitution Implementation Commission, working with civil society groups. Among those involved are the Kenya Section […]
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11 July 2011
Kenya Creates Portal for Government Data
Kenya July 8 launched a web portal offering free access to government information. There are over 160 datasets including the complete 2009 census, national budget data, nation and county public expenditure data, information on health care and school facilities. See the Data Catalog for a full list of what is available. “Today marks an important […]
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16 September 2010
New Kenyan Constitution Guarantees Access Right
The new Kenyan Constitution guarantees the right of access to information, but the question is now turning to implementation. After winning 67 percent approval in a referendum, the Constitution went into effect Aug. 28, 2010. The relevant section of the new Kenyan Constitution states: Access to information 35. (1) Every citizen has the right of […]
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11 May 2002
Kenya
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28 September 2017
Alphabetical and Chronological lists of countries with FOI regimes
Alphabetical and Chronological lists of countries with FOI regimes Alphabetical No Chronological Afghanistan 2014 1 Sweden 1766 Albania 1999 2 Finland 1951 Angola 2002 3 United States 1966 Antigua 2004 4 France 1978 Argentina 2004 5 Australia 1982 Armenia 2003 6 New Zealand 1982 Australia 1982 7 Canada 1983 Austria 1987 8 Colombia 1985 Azerbaijan […]
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19 January 2017
A Missed Opportunity for RTI in Ghana
By Ugonna Ukaigwe The author is a lawyer and a Project Consultant who consults for international, regional and national NGOs. She currently coordinates the work of the Right to Information Coalition, Ghana. The age-long Right to Information (RTI) Bill which has been described by many as the oldest Bill in Parliament suffered a major defeat […]
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28 December 2016
Eight Countries Adopt FOI Regimes in 2016
Eight countries adopted freedom of information laws or similar administrative regulations in 2016, according to FreedomInfo.org’s running tally that now shows 115 national FOI regimes. The number of additions in 2016 is one shy of the previous annual record of nine additions, set in 2011. See list of FOI countries by date and alphabetically. Joining […]
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28 September 2016
Mexican Law Rates at Top According to New RTI Ratings
The amendments to Mexico’s freedom of information law have made it the best access law in the world, according to the RTI Rating, a comparative assessment of national legal frameworks for the right to information done by the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD) and Access Info Europe. The changes gave Mexico 136 points out […]
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27 September 2016
FOI Impact: Success Stories
Successful requests for government information pack real-world punch. They help fight pollution, improve medical care, and protect human rights. FreedomInfo.org has collected potent examples, all from the past year, of how people around the world use their freedom of information laws (whatever its name). This sampling was culled from hundred of media accounts and from […]
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26 September 2016
Ghana’s President Backs Passage of RTI Legislation
Ghana’s president John Dramani Mahama Sept. 26 reiterated his support for passage of a right to information bill pending on Parliament, but added, “I don’t know where it is.” “I believe it is something we should complete and make available so that people can have a legal basis for demanding information if there is reluctance […]
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22 September 2016
OGP Celebrates Anniversary; Turkey Declared Inactive
The Open Government Partnership celebrated its fifth anniversary in New York City Sept. 20 with messages about past accomplishments and future challenges, including a tilt toward addressing climate change. Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Pradhan listed three main points: – First, we need deeper co-creation and civic participation. – Second, we need OGP governments and CSOs […]
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22 September 2016
FOI Notes: EU, Holland, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, India, US, Tanzania, Aid Transparency, Budget Transparency, Open Data, Namibia, Ghana, Ireland, Jamaica, Gambia, Transparency Research
EU: Moldova has ratified the 2009 Convention on Access to Official Documents, brining to nine the number of other ratifications to bring it into force. Armenia is expected to ratify it soon. Holland: Open State Foundation sends an open letter to Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and party leaders in the Dutch parliament urging creation […]
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28 July 2016
FOI Notes: OGP, US, Bulgaria, India, Spain, Open Data, Slovakia, Open Budgets, Board Game
OGP: See proposals for sessions at the OGP December summit in Paris, including many on access to information. OGP: “The inconvenient truth about the Open Government Partnership,” by Mukelani Dimba, Executive Director of the Open Democracy Advice Centre and incoming civil society chairperson of the Open Government Partnership, describes how OGP member states Kenya, Nigeria and South […]
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12 May 2016
FOI Notes: Africa, FOI Research, South Africa, Open Data, Anti-Corruption, Way More
Africa: A World Bank blog reports, “African countries come together to address gaps in managing digital information for open government.” On April 22 and April 29, representatives from Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Sierre Leone, South Africa, and Tanzania met to discuss “an issue of mounting concern: managing records and information to support open […]
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14 April 2016
FOI Notes: Aid Transparency, OGP, TA&I, Gambia, Bahamas, India, Open Data, US, UK, Australia
Aid Transparency: The 2016 Aid Transparency Index released by Publish What You Fund shows that only 10 donors, responsible for only a quarter of all aid, are achieving the international transparency standard. However, most of the organizations covered fall into the lowest three categories, scoring below 60% and “demonstrating that the publication of timely, comparable […]