FAFEN report reveals that public organizations are proactively disclosing 48% of the information required by law
Logo of the Free and Fair Elections Network (FAFEN). PHOTO: ARCHIVE
ISLAMABAD:
Public bodies in Balochistan proactively disclose an average of 48 per cent of the information required under the Balochistan Right to Information (BRTI) Act, 2021, reveals the latest transparency assessment report released by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN).
The assessment is part of FAFEN’s Campaign Against Disinformation through Information, which underlines the importance of proactive disclosures by public authorities to strengthen institutional transparency and counter misinformation and disinformation.
The assessment examined 66 public agencies in the province, including 39 secretariat departments, 12 deputy departments and 15 autonomous agencies, with respect to the proactive disclosure requirements prescribed in Section 5 of the BRTI Act.
The law requires proactive disclosure of nine categories of information about a public body. It also emphasizes the publication of up-to-date information in accessible formats, including through the Internet.
Overall, autonomous agencies fared relatively better, disclosing, on average, 59 per cent of the required information, followed by deputy departments at 46 per cent, while secretariat departments lagged behind at 44 per cent.
Among the departments of the secretariat, the Departments of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Information, Planning and Development, and Urban Planning and Development emerged as the most transparent, each of them disclosing 70 percent of the required information.
Among the attached departments, Gwadar Development Authority (GDA) and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) led with 60 per cent compliance.
Among autonomous bodies, Balochistan Education and Endowment Fund and Turbat University revealed 80 per cent of the required information.
Despite these high-performing public agencies, the evaluation found widespread gaps in compliance.
A large number of public bodies disclosed only 40 to 50 percent of the required information, while several public bodies lagged even further behind, disclosing only 10 to 30 percent of the information.
Basic organizational information, such as functions, duties, and institutional structure, was the most available information in nine categories, disclosed by 98 percent of public agencies.
Legal frameworks governing the operations of public bodies were available on 80 percent of the websites evaluated, while 73 percent disclosed information on public services and service delivery conditions.
About 21 percent of public agencies published some budget-related information, including proposed or actual expenditures.
Information about subsidy or benefit programs was disclosed by 15 percent of public agencies, while two percent of public agencies provided some details about the recipients of concessions, permits, licenses or authorizations.
