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Analysis of the Freedom of Information Bill 2019, Zimbabwe, November 2019
- By Raphael CLD
- 06 November 2019
Analysis of the Freedom of Information Bill 2019, Zimbabwe, November 2019
Zimbabwe is moving forward with a draft law to replace its 2002 Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act. This CLD Analysis examines the Freedom of Information Bill that was provided to local activists and Members of Parliament in September 2019. It finds that while reform is badly needed, the Bill only scores 72 points on the RTI Rating, a mere two points above the 2002 Act. Substantial revision is needed to bring the Bill in line with international standards.
A detailed analysis of the Bill, including an assessment according to the RTI Rating, shows that it only garners 72 points out of a possible 150, just two points more than the current AIPPA, at 70. This would place the Bill in 92nd position out of the 128 countries currently on the Rating, just 8 positions above the 100th placed AIPPA.
Some of the key problems with the Bill are as follows:
- Its scope of coverage of “public entities” is far too narrow.
- The law should include a specific list of categories of information that public entities must publish on a proactive basis rather than just imposing general proactive obligations.
- The procedures for making and processing requests should be far more detailed and precise, and designed to be as user-friendly as possible.
- The regime of exceptions should be narrowed considerably and the public interest override should apply to all exceptions.
- The law should provide for a dedicated and independent oversight body (information commission) rather than allocating this task to the Zimbabwe Media Commission.
CLD’s detailed analysis is available at: Zimbabwe: Analysis of the Freedom of Information Bill, 2019
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