MFWA, RTI Coalition to Convene Public Forum on Ghana’s RTI Law

As part of efforts to ensure effective implementation of the newly passed Right To Information (RTI) Law in Ghana, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) in collaboration with the Right To Information Coalition, will on Wednesday, September 25, 2019, at 9:00 am at the Swiss Spirit Alisa Hotel convene a public forum on the theme: Implementation of RTI Law: How will Ghana’s be different?

The Forum which forms part of activities to mark this year’s International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI) will deliberate on Ghana’s newly passed RTI law, its prospects and what is required for its successful implementation.

The Forum will bring together government ministries, departments and agencies, representatives from civil society groups, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), Academia, media groups and the general public.

In West Africa, 10 out of the 16 countries have passed the Right to Information or Access to Information Law. While this should improve citizens’ right to seek and receive information in the region, on the contrary, access to information is limited. The absence of requisite and functional structures to ensure the effective implementation of the Right to Information law account for its failure.

In Burkina Faso, for instance, the Right to Access Information Law (Loi no. 051-2015) passed in 2015 for more than two years was not functional. This is because subsidiary legislation to operationalise the law was not passed. This prevented citizens from invoking the law to access critical information and public documents.

As the newest country to pass the RTI Law in West Africa, Ghana will have to institute the necessary structures and mechanisms to ensure the RTI Law is not only in existence but also operational. The forum will, therefore, identify potential gaps and prospects, and make recommendations to ensure the effective implementation of the RTI Law.