RTIC Holds International Day for Universal Access To Information Public Forum In Accra
Story by: Magdalene Duncan
As part of activities marking the Right To Information (RTI) week, a public forum has been held in Accra to Celebrate the International Day for Universal Access by the Right To Information Commission(RTIC).
The forum which was under the Theme: ‘RTI Act 2019 as a tool to ensure transparency,good governance and sustainable development implementing RTI leveraging International Cooperation’, was supported by UNESCO and Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
The main aim of the forum was to give members of the general public an opportunity to participate in the discussion on the coalition on the Right to information as stipulated in the Right To Information Act 2019(Act 989).
RTIC Holds International Day for Universal Access To Information Public Forum In Accra
In a message read on her behalf, Ms Audrey Azoulay ,the Director General of UNESCO retreated that”access to reliable information saves lives and misinformation and rumours can cost them”.
“This simple lesson is one we have learnt to our detriment in recent years. Whether fighting a global pandemic or supporting public debate, we need free, reliable and independent information as a foundation upon which democratic societies are built”.
Noting that it is for this reason among others that the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 28th September as the International Day for Universal Access to Information.
RTIC Holds International Day for Universal Access To Information Public Forum In Accra
Further adding that ” our commitment to freely accessible information will only be effective if it is truly universal. It must not leave no one behind “.
For this reason, she urged all countries to adopt legislation in this field and to strengthen the implementation of such guarantees where these already exist”.
She called on governments to ensure safe and transparent data collection, strengthen record keeping and enable accurate analysis and that they must align these efforts with the international privacy standards.
RTIC Holds International Day for Universal Access To Information Public Forum In Accra
RTIC Holds International Day for Universal Access To Information Public Forum In Accra
In his address to grace the occasion, the Honorable Minister for Information, Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah noted that “access to information is a prerequisite tool for democracy”.
He further added that the implementation of the RTI Act has taken off smoothly despite the difficulties in general and difficulties that the Covid- 19 brought up.
Adding that ,government of Ghana acknowledges the support of all stake holders and commitments to ensure that the RTI is fully implemented.
He therefore used the occasion to call on the general public to “deepen your efforts and to work tirelessly so that RTI is successfully implemented in Ghana”.
The RTI Commission is an independent body established by the Right To Information (RTI)2019,(Act 989) with a board to promote, monitor, protect and enforce the right to information.
Speaking at the public forum during a panel discussion, the former Member of Parliament for Ketu North, who is also currently the Coordinator of the Zongo Development Fund, Honorable Ben Abdulai Banda noted that ” if we want to know how this law will ensure transparency, how this law will ensure good goverance and sustainable development in other to leverage international cooperation then there is need for citizens to know the law. ”
Adding that “it is very important, if citizens don’t know the law , don’t understand the law don’t appreciate some implicacies in the law ,how do you expect them to apply to public institutions to have access to information “.
He also stressed the need for information officers who are mandated to give access to and foster prerequiste for information to adopt an attitude that is friendly to the people who apply for information.
Source: www.thenewindependentonline.com
