<<Print>>

The Information Services Department of Gambia paid a courtesy call on the Right to Information Commission of Ghana today, 17th December, 2021.

The Right to Information Commission, led by the Chairperson, Justice K. A. Ofori-Atta (RTD), received the Gambian delegation led by Mr. Madiba Sillah who is the Principal Information Officer of Gambia.

The purpose of the call was to afford the Gambian Information Officers the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the implementation of the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989) in Ghana in order for them to learn and successfully aid them to implement their Access To Information (ATI) Act. The Gambian Access to Information Bill was adopted by the Gambia's National Assembly on 1st July, 2021, was assented to by the Gambian President, H. E. Adama Barrow in August, 2021 making Gambia the last anglophone West African country to have adopted access to information law.

The Gambian delegation outlined some of the challenges they are facing at the early stage of passing the Right to Information law especially on how people are perceiving how the RTI law should work.

Yaw Sarpong Boateng Esq., the Executive Secretary of the Right to Information Commission, Ghana, advised that the initial stage of the smooth implementation of the law is to engage in public education for the people to understand the details of the RTI law.

The Executive Secretary of the Right to Information Commission of Ghana, Yaw Sarpong Boateng Esq. further indicated that, for the Gambian RTI law to be implemented smoothly, the Gambian government has to imitate Ghana by establishing an independent body that will see to the implementation of the RTI law instead of leaving it in the hands of the Gambian's Information Services Department for the implementation. He reiterated that, the Information Services Department is not independent and hence seeing to the implementation of the RTI law may bring about conflict.

The Chairperson of the RTI Commission, Justice K. A. Ofori-Atta (RTD) and the Deputy Chairperson, Mrs. Elizabeth Asare appealed to the Gambian authority to implement the RTI law deviod of politics for the general public to have confidence that their right to information would not be stampeded.

The Programmes Officer of Media Foundation for West Africa, Seth J. Boakye who accompanied the Gambian delegation exhorted the good works of the RTI Commission in Ghana and implored them to do more.

Other members of the Gambian delegation were Mr. Ebrima A. Njie, Deputy Director, Ebrima Darbo, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Awa Sowe, Information Officer and accompanied by Mrs. Daisy Prempeh, Administration Officer of Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)