Work in progress: Developing policies for access to government information in the New South Africa

Abstract

Abstract Following South Africa’s transition to democracy in 1994, the SA government has adopted policies supporting freedom of expression and freedom of access to information. The Bill of Rights in the new Constitution includes a constitutional right of access to information held by the state. Since 1994 various initiatives have been taken by government and other bodies to promote such access. These include moves to reorganize government printing and publishing, restructure the government’s public information services, make government information available on the Internet, and extend telephony and Internet access to poor communities. SA’s new Legal Deposit Act, (1997) makes provision for the creation of official publications depositories. The Promotion of Access to Information Act, (2000) was enacted to ensure access to information held by the state and public bodies. However, despite much activity, it has proved difficult to translate principles into practical and well-coordinated measures to improve access to government information. A specific concern is the failure of policy-makers to visualize a role for libraries.