The Centre for Law and Democracy kicked off a new right to information (RTI) project in Pakistan today with a public presentation on the benefits of RTI. The project aims to provide support to information commissions and local government actors in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces of Pakistan with a view to improving implementation of RTI there. It is being undertaken as part of the Support to Local Governance Programme being run by the official German technical cooperation organisation, Deutsche Gesellshaft für Internationale Zusammenartbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
“This is an exciting project inasmuch as we are working directly with a range of key actors to improve implementation of the RTI laws in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, which are among the strongest anywhere in the world”, said Toby Mendel, Executive Director of CLD. “We also hope to develop more robust tools to assess implementation, something which is sorely needed.”
The talk, at Beaconhouse National University (BNU), focused on the benefits of RTI with a view to trying to get more people engaged on the demand side through making requests for information. The event also included presentations by the Deputy Director of the Punjab Information Commission, local NGO the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI), GIZ and BNU staff.
For further information, please contact:
Toby Mendel
Executive Director
Centre for Law and Democracy
Email: toby@law-democracy.org
+1 902 431-3688
www.law-democracy.org
twitter: @law_democracy
