March 26, 2013
Caribbean Countries meet in Kingston to Discuss Freedom of Information and Open Government Data
Between March 20th and 21st, 2013 the “Regional Conference on Freedom of Information in the Caribbean: Improving Management for the Environment” was held in Kingston, Jamaica, where Caribbean governments and civil society came together to discuss access to information, public participation in governance, access to justice, among other related and emerging issues such as Open Government Data and Open Government Partnership.
OD4D and UN-ECLAC supported the realization of the conference, participating in a panel entitled, “Open Government Data, Open Government Partnership and Freedom of Information.”
Also participating on the panel were Dr. Maurice McNaughton (MONA School of Business and Management, University of West Indies) and Carole Excell (World Resource Institute) which presented the topic from the two different, albeit synergic, perspectives of “Open Data” and “Freedom and Access to Information”. Elisa Calza, the OD4D project coordinator at ECLAC, proposed a general review of the concepts and main potentials of Open Government Data, describing the OD4D project’s objectives, initial results and upcoming activities (see part 1 and part 2 of her presentation).
At the conclusion of the two-day conference, on March 21, 2013, governments, civil society, and media announced the decision to launch a Caribbean network on freedom of information to support processes designed to improve standards for access to information in the region.
The conference also included various working groups, two of which focused on Open Government Data and Open Government Partnership. At the moment, only two Caribbean countries – Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago – have joined the OGP.
The conference was funded by The Commonwealth Foundation, the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Information Commissioner’s Office of the Cayman Islands. Organizers included the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET), World Resources Institute (WRI), The Access Initiative (TAI), Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), The Mona School of Business and Management, and the Access to Information Unit of Jamaica.
For more information, visit:
http://www.tribune242.com/news/2013/mar/25/freedom-of-information-network-launched/
