Information Society Watch

June 2006, Fay Durrant, First Monday

As governments worldwide move towards openness and transparency, the development of legislation to facilitate access to information is an essential requirement for modernisation of the public sector and for effective governance. This paper assesses the main elements and current status of the legislation from global surveys and examines in detail the progress in implementing the access legislation in the Caribbean. Issues of the context of access legislation, complementary legislation, information infrastructure, administrative procedures, and the impact of new technologies on access to information services are addressed. In the English–speaking Caribbean, Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago have passed access legislation and several countries including the British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, and Guyana are discussing their own draft legislation. Globally, over 68 countries have also approved national legislation and many are actively involved in the implementation of these laws. These laws mainly have an overall objective of mitigating corruption and provide the general public with the ability to request documents and other materials held by all government agencies and other agencies receiving public funds. Factors influencing the approval of this legislation have included internal and external pressures from civil society, local and international press associations, and regional and international organisations. Exemptions identified under the laws are usually based on ensuring national security (Adapted from author).

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