Right to Information : Case Studies on Implementation

Trapnell, Stephanie E.

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: RIGHT TO INFORMATION;    RTI;    RTI LAW;    INTERNATIONAL RTI CASE STUDIES;   

RP-ID  :  98720

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

This first round of eight case studieswas completed in 2012. The case studies were preparedexamining the experience of a number of countries that havepassed Right to Information (RTI) legislation within thelast 15 years: Albania, India, Mexico, Moldova, Peru,Romania, Uganda, and the United Kingdom. Each country casestudy assesses four dimensions critical to the effectiveimplementation of RTI legislation as follows: 1. The scopeof the information that the law covers, which determineswhether an RTI law can serve as the instrument of moretransparent and accountable governance as envisaged by itsadvocates. For example, a law that leaves too manycategories of information out of its purview, that does notadequately apply to all agencies impacting public welfare orusing public resources, or that potentially contradicts withother regulations, like secrecy laws, will not be effective.2. Issues related to public sector capacity and incentives,additional key functions and demands within the publicsector created by RTI, entities responsible for thesefunctions, and various organizational models for fulfillingthese functions. 3. Mechanisms for appeals and effectiveenforcement against the denial of information(whether it bean independent commission or the judiciary); the relativeindependence, capacity, and scope of powers of the appealsagency, and the ease of the appeals process; and theapplication of sanctions in the face of unwarranted or muterefusals, providing a credible environment. 4. The capacityof civil society and media groups to apply the law topromote transparency and to monitor the application of thelaw, and a regulatory and political environment that enablesthese groups to operate effectively. The in-depth researchpresented in these case studies was conducted to examinefactors that promote the relative effectiveness of thesefour key dimensions when implementing RTI reforms, includinginstitutional norms, political realities, and economicconcerns. An analysis was conducted to determine whichmodels have the potential to work in different contexts andwhat lessons can be drawn from these experiences to helpcountries currently in the process of setting up RTI regimes.