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ACCESS TO INFORMATION PROGRAMME

ACCESS TO INFORMATION PROGRAMME. Facilitating Informed Activism An Overview by Titus Moetsabi Freedom of Expression Institute. COLLABORATING PARTNERS. Southern African Trade Information and Negotiating Initiative Mwengo Jubilee Angola, Zambia

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ACCESS TO INFORMATION PROGRAMME

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  1. ACCESS TO INFORMATION PROGRAMME Facilitating Informed Activism An Overview by Titus Moetsabi Freedom of Expression Institute

  2. COLLABORATING PARTNERS • Southern African Trade Information and Negotiating Initiative • Mwengo • Jubilee Angola, Zambia • CORN-CROSS BORDER ASSOCIATIONS Mozambique, Swaziland • Southern African Centre for Economic Justice • Women for Change • Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa • Botswana Council of NGOs • MISA

  3. COLLABORATINGPARTNERScontd • Malawi Economic Justice Network • Zambia Association for Research and Development • South African History Archive • Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development • Zimbabwe Social Forum

  4. SUMMARY & OBJECTIVES • Pilot project • Advancing cause of economic justice in SADC • Right of Access to Information belongs to all citizens yet risks being elite instrument for media and handful of NGOs • Social appropriation of right needed to get critical mass for legislative changes in countries without right to know legislation

  5. PROGRAM RELEVANCE • Focus on access to information to support work of region’s • Economic justice networks; • NGOs; • CBOs; • SMs. • Focus on access to information about state of delivery of basic services: • Water, and waste management; • Electricity; • Health; • Transport.

  6. RELEVANCE contd • Access to basic services is basic human right • Need for this right to be written into Constitutions of SADC countries • Address information deficits faced by organisations struggling for socio-economic justice • Develop models to be pursued in three year proposal

  7. ACTIVITIES • Key struggles that have thrown up access to information problems: • Tackle debt and debt-related issues in SADC; • Participate in budget monitoring and participatory budget making in SADC; • Ensure transparency in macro-economic decision making in SADC; • Monitor IFIs and their effects on SADC; • Publicise, rause awareness and knowledge about South Africa’s hegemony in SADC.

  8. IMPLEMENTATION RELATIONSHIP • MOU to define and facilitate relationships: • Where access to information legislation exists to be used to file information requests in activity areas; • Where access to information legislation does not exists, but constitutional provisions exists, SMs to be mobilised to ensure legislation is passed; • Where constitutional provisions don’t exists economic justice networks to be mobilised to come up with model access to information law that SM movements could lobby for.

  9. APPROACH PHASED • PHASE ONE – • Desk research on FOI monitoring indicators; • Development of access to information principles PHASE TWO – • Who does what around activities related to debt, budget monitoring, macro –economic decision making and IFIs • PHASE THREE - • Who does what around South African hegemony in SADC activities

  10. PROBLEMATIQUE & SADC POOR • Legacy of colonialism • diamonds, land exploitation • Legacy of indebtedness • SAPs, loans • Globalisation • Trade agreements via WTO • Democratisation • Multipartism • Regional Integration • Common Market via freed trade area • South Africa’s dominance of SADC • SA companies delivering basic services e.g., electricity and, telecomms

  11. SADC PROBLEMS & ACCESS TO INFO RELATIONSHIP • Governments culture of secrecy to hide reasons for lack of delivery of services • Culture of secrecy to hide deals that may be politically unpopular with masses • Commercial confidentiality or trade secrets limiting/preventing access to info in Cos delivering commercialised basic services • Insufficient legal instruments to access info about basic services delivered on regional basis • Access to means of disseminating info highly unequal • SA secrecy on trade negotiating positions, & its failure to ensure procedural fairness in WTO etc

  12. Angola Priorities • National budget monitoring and advocacy, • Land and ownership rights for internally displaced • Access to info activities on economic policy • Development of EJN Angola

  13. Botswana Priorities • Monitoring benefits and effects of resource extraction • Promoting public participation in municipal and national budget making • SAN minorities access to national resources • Access to HIV/AIDS treatment resource flows • Electoral system transparency • Identify orgs that can support Access to info legislation • Constitution monitoring movement

  14. Lesotho Priorities • Initiatives to end corruption • Initiatives for national and municipal public participation in budget making • Economic literacy • Lesotho Highlands Water Project Advocacy • Need for EJN

  15. Malawi Priorities • Public expenditure monitoring campaign • Privatisation, resource allocation, budget making • Access to info legislation • Monitor accummulation, use and servicing of public debt • Constitutional activism

  16. Mozambique Some Priorities • Civic participation in economic policy • Cashew nut industry in context of globalisation • Poverty monitoring • Poverty monitoring in provinces • Understanding development cooperation packages • Access to info for public expenditure monitoring

  17. Namibia Some Priorities • Civic society support for Access to Info issues • San people and education • Telecentres • Research and action on municipal services

  18. Zimbabwe Some Priorities • Opening democratic spaces for civil society mobilisation • Access to info on debt and development issues • Transitional economic policyAlternative means of disseminating information • Human rights abuses information • Access to treatment re-HIV and AIDS • Initiatives against corruption to be supported • Alternative access to info legislation

  19. Zambia Some Priorities • Monitoring and campaigning against corruption • Telecentres and community radio • Inclusion of justiciable socio-economic rights in constitution • Monitor public expenditure • Promote access to info legislation • Budget making at municipal level

  20. SWAZILAND Some Priorities • Access to info policy and legislation • Public expenditure monitoring • Public budget advocacy

  21. EJN Information Priorities • Economic literacy • Information campaigns research • Debt and debt related issues • Budgets • Economic and social policy • Trade • Financial institutions and related organisations • Activities of private sector

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