Peace Programs

How does The Carter Center work to support the right to public information?

Access to public records gives citizens the opportunity to participate in public life, help set priorities, and hold their governments accountable. A free flow of information can be an important tool for building trust between a government and its citizens. It also improves communication within government to make the public administration more efficient and more effective in delivering services to its constituency. But, perhaps most importantly, access to information is a fundamental human right and can be used to help people exercise other critical human rights, such as clean water, healthcare, and education. Access to information has been more recently recognized as an instrument that can be utilized to advance the pro-poor agenda in developing nations.

Since 1999, the Carter Center's Access to Information Project has supported the establishment of access to information cultures in the four core countries of Jamaica, Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Mali.  At the regional level, the Center has provided technical assistance, partnered with the World Bank, and shared international experience and served as advisors to the Organization of American States and the Inter-American Development Bank.