Kathmandu Tribune: Kathmandu: Saturday, March 24, 2018.
Freedom Forum
and The Asia Foundation jointly brought together participants from government,
civil society, media and development agencies for a one-day workshop on March
23 on the right to information (RTI) and open government data in federal Nepal.
The workshop
aimed to increase participants’ understanding of the implications of Nepal’s
federal structure on the right to information and open government data was
inaugurated by Chief Information Commissioner Krishna Hari Baskota.
Another
objective of the event was to increase awareness about the initiatives of
various non-government actors working on the right to information and open
government data at local, provincial and federal government tiers in order to
help identify synergies and possible areas of collaboration.
The workshop
was organized under the “Data for Development in Nepal” Program, a project
implemented by The Asia Foundation in partnership with Development Initiatives
with funding from the UK Government’s Department for International Development.
Following the
adoption of the 2015 Constitution and the successful completion of the
three-tier elections, Nepal has been undergoing a process of transition to a
Federal State. The Constitution and the Right to Information Act adopted in
2007 guarantees the right of citizens to seek and receive information regarding
themselves and on any matter of public importance.
In addition,
the Act and Right to Information Rules adopted in 2009 require bodies to
proactively disclose 20 different types of information, including essential
information about government agencies, their functions, services, and
decision-making processes and share information about its activities every
three month in open data format through any medium. In the context of federal
Nepal, access to reliable and timely information will be critical for citizens
to participate effectively in local-level decision-making and to hold their
locally elected leaders to account.
In addition
to information, access to accurate data in open formats is crucial for
citizens, media, and civil society organizations to track local development
progress and to support provincial and local governments in making
evidence-based decisions on planning and resource allocations. Once adopted and
implemented, the Open Government Data Action Plan submitted last year by the
National Information Commission to the Prime Minister’s Office will be an
important instrument to make data more openly and easily available to the
general public and key decision-makers across all spheres of Nepal.
Ms. Tirza
Theunissen of The Asia Foundation said, “For federalism to provide the promised
opportunity for citizens to engage more closely with government it is critical
that the right to information and open government data are promoted and
implemented at all tiers of government”.
Mr. Taranath
Dahal, Executive Chief of Freedom Forum, said, “This workshop is an important
opportunity to understand government commitments to transparency and co-develop
ideas that can support in the delivery of this transparency”.
At the
workshop, participants discussed the various challenges and opportunities that
exist to promote the right to information and open government data. Following
presentations by the National Information Commission, the Central Bureau of
Statistics and the Prime Minister’s Office, a panel discussion was held during
which participants could ask questions to the presenters, and representatives
of various civil society organizations presented on their initiatives to make
central and local-level information and data available.
In the
afternoon, participants formed working groups to brainstorm ideas for promoting
the right to information and open government data, addressing local-level
information and data gaps and developing strategies to enhance information
mechanism and data literacy and build capacity to use data.
Each group
presented their group work and participants provided feedback. These ideas will
be used to inform the efforts of the Data for Development Program and Freedom
Forum to further promote the right to information and open government data at
local, provincial and federal levels.