Sierra Leone emerges 'champion' of access to information

A skit by Sierra Leone actors suggesting ways of facilitating access to public information has won accolades in an event meant to lobby public institution in the West Africa.

The competition staged in Ghana's capital Accra pitted Sierra Leone amateur actors against those from host Ghana and Liberia.

In an engaging way, the winning piece took the audience into an imaginary process of developing strategies to persuade parliamentarians to pass a Freedom of Information (FOI) bill to foster leadership in open governance-enhancing access to information.

According to one of the observers Prof Richard Calland the piece was excellent, organised and with a clear message that captures the hearts and minds of the target audience. He works with the International School for Transparency.

Freedom

Besides the drama, there were others events geared towards the bigger picture of the day to lobby West African leaders on the place of information in a modern society.

Liberia, in October last year, made history when it became the first country in West Africa to sign into law the Freedom of Information bill.

Sierra Leone was since then named among a few countries in the sub region that is close to passing the bill, including Ghana and Nigeria which, on Wednesday, followed on Liberia`s footsteps and became the second country to pass the law in the sub-region.