Similarly, in the broader sphere of human rights, the right to life in the universal declaration of human rights everyone has the right to life, liberty, and the security of person. Powers of search and arrest surrender, suspension and cancellations of mineral rights 67. The right to information bill is implicit in the notion that the ghanaian taxpayers need to have access to information concerning what government does with their. A right to information activist says parliaments delay in passing the right to information bill for ghanaian citizens may be due to politicians misconstruing of the law as one for the media and their fear that it will give too much power to the media. The ghana right to information bill, 2010 news ghana. The right to information is guaranteed and entrenched in the constitution. Article 211f of the constitutions provides that all persons shall have the right to information, subject to such qualifications and laws as are necessary in a democratic society. Right to information coalition, ghana home facebook. The data protection bill, 2018 arrangement of clauses clause part ipreliminary 1 short title. Mar 06, 2018 20180306 president nana addo dankwa akufoaddo has served notice he will give impetus to his fight against corruption by impressing on parliament to pass the right to information bill rti.
The united states of america, united kingdom, south africa, kenya, nepal, etc. However, while the legal framework is necessary, it is not sufficient to ensure real access to public sector information by the public. Issued by the right to information coalition the coalition on the right to information, ghana has noted with great concern his excellency john dramani mahamas comments on ghana s right to information rti bill in an interview on dw tv political talk show called conflict zone on october 7, 2015. The following is an explanation of the right to information in ghana. Article 19 1 says that every citizen has freedom of speech and expression. Therefore the only consideration should be that the contents of the manual. Here is some general information about you new host country the flag the coat of arms the national anthem maps data on ghana introduction geography climate people education history ghanas presidents government and political conditions economy foreign relations links the flag of ghana. Human rights advocacy centre to simplify the process in this book lawmaking process in.
The right to information act has been welcomed by journalists in the country who. The womens manifesto for ghana preamble we, women from the ten regions of ghana, of diverse backgrounds, religions, occupations, ages, resource endowments, abilities and challenges, having participated in a series of meetings from june 2003 to july 2004 to deliberate on the situation of women in ghana. An author has the right to transfer ownership in the economic right to the work by assignment, testamentary disposition or operation of law. The rti bill mainly seeks to give flesh to the foregoing article by providing for access to official information held by public institutions, subject to public interests and freedom of others. This memorandum analyses the draft right to information bill of the republic of ghana draft law.
Forum on the right to information bill held in yendi ghana. Ghana is about to enact a right to information law now the right to inform ation bill to provide a legal framework fo r making public sector information accessible to th e public. Ghana president assents to right to information bill africanews. What is right to information right to information wiki. Ghana committee approves right to information bill freedom info. Jun 12, 2018 the centre for law and democracy cld has released an analysis of ghanas 2018 right to information bill, which is now before parliament. Sierra leone, ghana, kenya, liberia, malawi, south africa, tanzania, tunisia, cabo. Forum on the right to information bill held in yendi. Ghana s president nana addo dankwa akufoaddo on tuesday may 21 signed into law the right to information, rti, act. On industrial goods, almost all of ghanas tariffs are unbound at the wto, such that ghana could raise tariffs to any rate at any time. This book also has a pictorial representation on an a2 poster. Chapter 4 ethical and social issues in information systems identify the ethical, social, and political issues that are raised by information systems. I am pleased to present this right to information in africa manual for public.
Judge orders disclosures based on ghana constitution global. Issued by the right to information coalition the coalition on the right to information, ghana has noted with great concern his excellency john dramani mahamas comments on ghanas right to information rti bill in an interview on dw tv political talk show called conflict zone on october 7, 2015. Ghanas constitution of 1992 with amendments through 1996. Jul 15, 2018 a days sensitization workshop on right to information rti bill has been held in yendi. Pdf information is an important resource in the 21st century knowledgebased society. The bill was tabled before parliament on february 5, 2010 and it was specifically allocated to. Ghana s parliament has passed into law the right to information, rti, bill, as at tuesday evening according to an influential local media outlet, the multimedia group.
A levy is imposed on every device capable of copying a work protected by. The coalition on the right to information, ghana is a group of civil society organisations and human rights activists working to promote good. Since the first draft of a right to information law some 16 years ago, the executive and legislature have been tossing it at will between themselves like a football. Therefore, a logical sequel to the enactment of the law is to create the. The centre for law and democracy cld has released an analysis of ghana s 2018 right to information bill, which is now before parliament. Right to information law not for media alone coalition. Ghana president assents to right to information bill. Bearing in mind the civil society campaign of many years for adoption of. Major concerns over the right to information bill latest news. Ghana parliament passes right to information law after.
Identify the principles for conduct that can be used to guide ethical decisions. In a way, ghana needs to catch up to be internationally credible and. Anybody can apply to any government agency or body for access to information, according to the right under the right to information bill. Revised broadcasting bill, 2014 page 2 the only legislation that relate to broadcasting are the ghana broadcasting corporation act, 1968 nlcd 226, national media commission act, 1993 act 449 established in accordance with articles 166 and 167 of the constitution, the national. In ghana, the rti is a constitutionally guaranteed right enshrined under article 21 1 f of the 1992 constitution, which provides that. Two satellite images encompassing most of ghana reveal extensive flooding. This is because if you went to any government department and told the officer there. The ghana right to information bill, 2010 seeks to provide for the implementation of the right to information guaranteed under article 211f of the.
The draft law was prepared by the department of the attorney general and. Ghanas human rights court gives life to the right to information. Article 23 right to work 75 article 24 right to rest and leisure 76 article 25 right to an adequate 77 standard of living and health article 26 right to education 79 article 27 right to culture 80 article 28 social and international order 81 article 29 duties and limitations 82 article 30 no abuse of rights 84 6. Even though rti is a fundamental right, still we need rti act to give us this right. Right to information bill ghana pdf provide a precis of the work that chri has been doing in ghana on rti issues. The event comes about two months after the parliament passed it after years. The analysis welcomes the fact that ghana is finally moving forward to adopt this key piece of democratic legislation. Oct 16, 2011 in the bill, anybody including noncitizens has the right to apply to access information as stated in article 21 1 f of the 1992 constitution of ghana. In the book, the introductory part covers the historical overview of ghanas legislature and the composition of the parliament of ghana. In the absence of a national freedom of information law, a high court of justice court in ghana has ordered the disclosure of documents based. Of ghana entitled data protection act, 2012 an act to establish a data protection commission, to protect the prnacy of the individual and personal data by regulating the processing of personal information, to provide the process to obtain, hold, use or disclose personal information and for related matters. Apr 15, 2016 one of those issues is the right to information. Right to information is a part of fundamental rights under article 19 1 of the constitution.
Digital preservation, freedom of information foi, right to information rti information. President nana addo dankwa akufoaddo will give the bill a presidential assent to be. Ghana has bound all agricultural tariffs in the wto at an average of 97. In 2002 a freedom of information bill was prepared by the attorney generals department. Ghana is about to enact a right to information law now the right to. Analysis of ghanas right to information bill centre for law and. Part iiobjects and principles of protection of personal data 4 principles of data protection. The crux of this publication how a draft bill becomes a law is then discussed. Africa ghana the world factbook central intelligence. The view on the left taken on 12 september 2007 shows river systems throughout the length and breadth of the small country swollen compared to conditions in june right before the rainy season started. However, the ghana right to information bill currently before parliament is very weak in.
The political class in ghana are repelled by transparency. To give effect to this provision, ghana has begun to take steps in promulgating the right to information law now the information bill to. Analysis of right to information bill centre for law. Ghanaians react to passage of rti bill article pulse ghana. The effort was to create the needed awareness to ensure that effort being made to pass the bill was expedited. The ghana right to information bill, 2010 seeks to provide for the implementation of the right to information guaranteed under article 211f of the constitution of the republic of ghana, 1993.
Minerals and mining act natural resource governance. Timely disclosure of information is fundamental to the efficacy of any right to information legislation. We looked at some of the policy documents brought up in discussions of foi, such as the data protections act 2012 in ghana and the secrets act 1962 in. Nov 23, 2017 a right to information act could have saved kaba. All persons have the right to information subject to. The information professionals role in the right to. The preamble indicates that the rti bill is meant for implementing the right to. Lawmakers in ghana have passed a bill that will allow more transparency and accountabiltity in public affairs.
The draft law was prepared by the department of the attorney general and was subsequently forwarded to the ministry of information to circulate for public comment. Ghanas president nana addo dankwa akufoaddo on tuesday may 21 signed into law the right to information, rti, act. This comment contains article 19s analysis of the draft right to information bill of ghana draft bill, which has been prepared by the government. Following some degree of consultations with civil society, the bill was finally laid before the 5th parliament on friday, february 5, 2010. The most flooded rivers are the white volta and its. In the book, the introductory part covers the historical overview of ghana s legislature and the composition of the parliament of ghana. Model freedom of information bill the commonwealth. A parliamentary committee in ghana has advanced an amended right to information bill for consideration by the full parliament. Because of that, they have reneged on their duty to pass a right to information law. However, the ghana right to information bill currently before parliament is very weak in this direction and could take more than half a year in certain situations before a request for information. In 2003, the government of ghana prepared the first draft of the right to information rti bill to give effect to the constitutionally guaranteed fundamental right to information. Ghana is about to enact a right to information law now the right to information bill to provide a legal framework for making public sector information accessible to the public. Minerals and mining act natural resource governance institute.
A critique of the draft right to information bill, ghana. Suspension or cancellation of mining lease or restricted mining lease 70. Introduction this memorandum analyses the draft right to information bill of the republic of ghana draft law. A days sensitization workshop on right to information rti bill has been held in yendi. License of an exclusive economic right may be granted in writing, orally or inferred by conduct. My sons right not to be abused created a duty for me, his father, to not abuse him and to protect him from others abuse. Evaluate the impact of contemporary information systems and the internet on the protection of. Rti bill will be law before parliament rises akufoaddo. Right to information rti bill the bill was finally passed after its third reading on tuesday, march 26, 2019.
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