The Constitution, Kenyan flag and the National anthem. [PCS]
Article 35 of the Constitution guarantees every citizen the fundamental right to access information held by the State or by private entities when needed to protect or exercise a right.
However, the media, citizens, and civil societies have faced intimidation, threats, blackmail among other challenges when seeking information from both county and national government.
To defend the right, Katiba Institute initiated a 3-year project in Nakuru, Nairobi and Samburu, to train government officials, media, civil societies and security agencies on Access to Information (ATI) rights.
The aim of the project was to empower state institutions and citizens to use ATI to promote good governance and to foster transparency, accountability, and human rights.
Patricia Joseph, the Institute’s Programme Manager, said that the project that concluded this year led to significant progress on information access.
“County government officials and ward and sub-county administrators understood that they had the responsibility to proactively disseminate information and citizens understood that they had the right to seek for information on development projects, budgets, among other relevant issues,” she said.
However, the project revealed that state institutions still withhold critical information, following an analysis of the ATI letters the institute wrote during their project implementation.