These were the messages delivered by various facilitators at the just ended two-day training of Information Officers on ATI Law in National Languages at Khamsys Higher Education Training Centre in Bijilo.
The training was organised by the Department of Information Services (DoIS) with funding from UNESCO through The Gambia National Commission for UNESCO Participation Program 2022-2023.
According to the facilitators, the enactment of the ATI Law is a landmark event in the country’s democratic transition process. They added that the law empowers all persons to have access to information from public institutions and relevant private bodies in order to promote a culture of transparency and accountability. Therefore, the law is for everybody.
Having in place an ATI Law, they added is a profound testament to Gambia Government’s commitment to the ideal of democracy and a conviction that meaningful participation in democratic process requires a citizenry that is well-informed.
“An Information Commission is being set-up to facilitate the implementation of the ATI law but some classes of information are exempted from public disclosure,” facilitators said.
The facilitators also called on Information Officers to give special and adequate assistance to the differently able requesters anytime they request information from public institutions.
They outlined the categories of classified information to Information Officers.
