The International Republican Institute in partnership with the Right to Information Commission (RTIC) and the Right to Information Coalition has organized a two-day workshop for regional-based information officers and civil society organizations from 12 regions of Ghana on increasing the level of awareness to request public information from government agencies to enhance political accountability. The workshop is organized under the Political Accountability Activity (POLA) funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The project seeks among its broader objectives for citizens to demand improved political accountability and transparency of public office holders.
Even though Ghana passed the Right to Information Act (RTI) in 2019, there are concerns about increasing the level of awareness among citizens on the process required for the effective use of the law to enhance accountability and transparency. The selection of 12 regions for the workshop was due to their least number of Right to Information requests as outlined in the Commission’s 2022 annual report. Thus, the workshop aims to support civil society groups to effectively obtain public information and conduct advocacy campaigns to raise awareness about citizens’ rights under the RTI Act as well as empower the capacity of officials/information officers of government agencies responsible for political accountability on effective response to requests for public information.
An outcome of the workshop was the selection of some civil society groups that will be supported by the International Republican Institute to obtain public information and conduct advocacy campaigns to raise awareness about citizens’ rights under the RTI Act.
About IRI
The International Republican Institute is a non-partisan premier international democracy development organization. IRI currently works in more than 100 countries to strengthen civil society, build democratic political parties, increase inclusion of ethnic and religious minorities, strengthen women’s political empowerment and leadership, and work on other key areas essential to democratic governance. We encourage democracy in places where it is absent, help democracy become more effective where it is in danger, and share best practices where democracy is flourishing. In West Africa, IRI is present in nearly a dozen countries, including Nigeria, Benin, Mali, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, and now…here in Ghana.
In Ghana, IRI is implementing a four-year USAID-funded Political Accountability Activity (POLA) which seeks to support civil society organizations and platforms to advocate for a more accountable political regime including support for elections and better responsiveness of political actors at the local level. The interventions of POLA are to help citizens demand improved political accountability, more inclusive political systems to foster active and diverse citizen engagement, and advancing electoral reforms.
