Domestic Isomorphic pressures in the design of FOI oversight institutions in Latin America

Even though many countries in Latin America have adopted FOI Laws, there are significant differences in the institutional design of FOI oversight institutions. Most explanations highlight the role of political competition in motivating political actors to design strong de jure FOI oversight institutions. The design of FOI oversight institutions in Chile, Peru and Uruguay, however, cannot fully be explained by political competition. We show how isomorphic pressures help explain variation in the de jure strength of the FOI oversight institutions. Our findings highlight the importance of considering domestic constraints on the diffusion of one-size-fits-all models. To analyze each case, we conducted a systematic process-tracing analysis. Our in-depth analysis allowed us to assess different theories concerning the specific institutional design of FOI oversight institutions.Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovació

The role of access to information in enabling transparency and public participation in governance : a case study of access to policy consultation records in South Africa

The operationalisation of good governance principles such as transparency and public participation depends largely on the degree of access that citizens have to government information. This article is based on the notion that citizens should be informed about what government is or does (transparency) and provided with sufficient opportunities to influence this (public participation). Both of these depend on the provision of reliable information before, during and after policy consultation. The article explores how transparency may be operationalised through access to information and how this is implemented in South Africa through the Promotion of Access to Information Act. It then focuses on policy consultation as a mechanism for government transparency that can only function adequately if the public has access to information concerning both the policy and the consultatio

Seeking access to environmental information in South Africa : a critical review of the relevant legal framework and jurisprudence

The deteriorating state of South Africa's natural environment has been linked to the exponential growth in anthropogenic pressures associated with urban life. In the wake of dire water shortages and the onslaught of climate change, reports have shown increased environmental degradation and evidence of decreasing water, soil and air quality. The state of the environment has therefore raised concerns as to the legal relationship governing communication, engagement and accountability between citizens, government authorities, and the private sector. Following the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and the inclusion of the environmental right, environmental law significantly developed as a means to regulate activities affecting people and the environment. The National Environmental Management Act and the Promotion of Access to Information Act therefore, play a critical role in overseeing decision-making and accountability between stakeholders regarding activities that affect the environment. Citizens are usually the ones affected most by environmental degradation and therefore require proper public involvement in decision-making and environmental governance efforts. Public participation is vital to incorporating local knowledge and practices into formal government and private sector decision-making processes with an emphasis on the sharing and access of environmental information as well as the ability to hold wrongdoers accountable. Using academic legal literature, jurisprudence, governmental and organisational reports, the dissertation examines the theoretical notions of environmental governance, public participation and access to information. Following this, links are made between the theoretical notions and to accepted forms of environmental information, the means and outcomes of granting access followed by the important role of rights and laws in providing the procedures with which to allow citizens access to information held by public and private bodies. The dissertation therefore emphasises the value of legislation that offers wide access to information, in a user friendly and explanatory manner, to assist all members of society in accessing information. Access to information is a pivotal tool for holding government and private entities accountable for pollution and environmental degradation and allows citizens to enforce their right to a healthy environment. In doing so, the important oversight role of the courts in adjudicating on and balancing interests where environmental protection is concerned, is highlighted. In light of this, the dissertation assesses the key legal elements that make up any effective access to information regime and compares these key legal elements to those that make up the South African access to environmental information regime with a focus on the Promotion of Access to Information Act. These key elements include the scope and nature of information, limitations, access procedures, protection of whistle-blowers and appeal and review mechanisms. The efficacy and practical implementation of these key elements are critically reviewed alongside a consideration of how they have been interpreted by the courts. The dissertation thus provides a blended discussion and review of the state of access to environmental information in South Africa using relevant laws and cases to highlight various challenges, successes and guidance that has emerged and how it may aid future requesters

Compliance with freedom of information legislation by public bodies in South Africa

Bibliography: pages 86-93In South Africa, freedom of information (FOI) or the right of access to information (ATI) is entrenched in section 32 of the Constitution. Section 32 guarantees every citizen the right of access to any information held by the state or held by any other person that is to be used for the protection or exercise of any right. The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) is the law that gives effect to section 32 of the Constitution. Regardless of a remarkable trend towards the adoption of FOI laws globally, international trends have shown this does not automatically translate into fulfilment of people’s right to information, as access to information by citizens remains a challenging factor. This study utilised mixed method research through the explanatory sequential design to assess compliance with FOI legislation by public bodies in South Africa with the view to ensure transparency, accountability and good governance. In this regard, the study first conducted a quantitative study by analysing the reports of the South African Human Rights Commission from the reporting years 2006/07 to 2016/07 to assess compliance with sections 14, 17 and 32 of the PAIA. The compliance trends were identified and thereafter a qualitative study was conducted to answer the question why the situation was the way it was. In this regard, interviews were conducted with a purposively chosen sample from complying and non-complying public bodies. The targeted participants were records managers, deputy information officers or officials responsible for PAIA in each chosen public body. The mixing strategy for the current study was at the data analysis, presentation and reporting level. Key results suggest that over the years, there were problems in the implementation of the FOI legislation in South Africa and its use was limited. Where implementation has taken place, it has been partial and inconsistent. The responsibility for implementation of FOI legislation in most public bodies is assigned to legal departments that do not have knowledge of what records are created, where and how they are kept. With regard to compliance, in terms of the degree of comparison, the situation was better in national departments, worse in provincial departments (with full compliance from the Free State, Limpopo, Western Cape and, to some extent, KwaZulu-Natal) and worst in municipalities. The study recommends the establishment of an information governance unit to implement FOI in public bodies. This unit will also be responsible for other information functions such as records management and information technology. Failure to assign responsibility to a relevant unit would perpetuate the non-compliance with FOI legislation in South Africa. As a result, accountability, transparency and good governance preached by the public sector to advance democracy in South Africa would be a mirage. A model for the implementation of PAIA within a public body is suggested.Information ScienceM. Inf

Managing records in South African public health care institutions : a critical analysis

The historical evolution of South Africa’s health sector, dating back to the 17th century, is significantly different from that of other African countries. Throughout the four centuries of development there have been numerous advances in health policy, legislative instruments and health system progress. Against this background this dissertation critically analysed the management of records in public health care institutions in South Africa. The study did this by addressing three objectives: assess the legislative, policy and regulatory contextual framework of South Africa’s health care system; assess the effectiveness of records management within public health care institutions; and identify appropriate interventions to address the challenges facing records management in the health care system. The study used purposive sampling to identify respondents with diverse expertise in three main sectors: the public sector, the private sector as well as in academic and research institutions. Using interview research technique the study solicited data that was analysed in order to provide a composite picture in addressing the research objectives. The analysis of data revealed three overarching themes. First, there is substantial legislative and regulatory dissonance in the management of health records in the country. While there are extensive legislative, regulatory and policy instruments that could be used to manage records, many lack coherence with records management issues such as records retention. Second, understanding the complex interplay of different legal and regulatory instruments is a critical first step, but it remains the beginning of the process towards building a sophisticated implementation process. For this process to be successful, study respondents argued that records compliance would have to be the backbone of all other compliance processes. Third, while there were substantial areas of weakness in the management of records in South Africa’s public health sector, there have been a number of pockets of excellence. These include the efforts towards complying to access to information legislation by the Limpopo Department of Health and Social Development as well as the successful introduction of Enterprise Content Management systems in health care institutions by the Western Cape Department of HealthInformation ScienceD. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science