Open Data

By Loyce Kyogabirwe | Norah Owaraga, a Ugandan researcher, recently narrated her experience on accessing government-held information in the country. She recounted a trip to Tororo district in eastern Uganda where she sought information on Tuberculosis prevalence in prisons. “I was told to go back to the prisons headquarters in Kampala (the capital) to get […] Read more

By Loyce Kyogabirwe | The right to information (RTI) is essential for the functioning of any democracy and is a prerequisite for transparency, accountability, gender equality and citizens’ participation in governance processes. However, Uganda faces numerous challenges to realising the right to access information despite having an access to information law. In the course of […] Read more

Tweet Report | During 2014 and 2015, CIPESA implemented a project aimed at empowering citizens in East Africa to use Right to Information (RTI) laws to lodge requests and document their experiences through the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). The project further aimed to undertake awareness raising and network building activities to promote […] Read more

Tweet By Mailyn Fidler | At the first session of the 2016 Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa, questions about cross-border data access—usually a dry topic—took center stage. The moderator and participants grilled representatives from Google and Facebook about the fairness of limited African access to African data held by U.S. companies, invoking the need […] Read more

By Moses Odokonyero | Local government officials from the northern Uganda districts of Gulu, Amuru and Nwoya were recently trained in the use of the online freedom of information portal Ask Your Government (AYG).  The officials have said the platform, which is accessed at www.askyourgov.ug, will be useful in improving the flow and exchange of […] Read more

By Esther Nakkazi | On September 28, 2015, the International Right to Know Day  was commemorated in Uganda at an event that also marked the 10th Anniversary of the enactment of the country’s Access to Information Act (ATIA). During the celebrations held alongside the 2015 Forum on Internet Freedom in East Africa, stakeholders discussed experiences, […] Read more

By Gasirigwa G.S | As the 25 October general election draws closer in Tanzania, journalists have been urged to be impartial in their reporting. Many have also taken steps to ensure that their digital communication is not compromised particularly when seeking information during the electioneering period. In August, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) […] Read more

By Ashnah Kalemera | The push for open data that contributes to government transparency and accountability in service delivery and promotes citizens’ right to information and innovation in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector continues to gain prominence globally. Indeed, open data has been recognised as a key pillar of sustainable development. However, implementation […] Read more

By Aroob Syedah Iqbal | IBM, the American multinational technology and consulting firm, reports that 2.5 quintillion (10^18) bytes of data are being generated everyday through search engines, social media check-ins, internet purchases and much more. The data being generated is at such an unprecedented rate that an estimated 90% of the data in the […] Read more

By Lillian Nalwoga | Despite the absence of a Right to Information law in Tanzania, advancements in the adoption of Information and Communication technology (ICT) in the country are enabling wider information availability in the public domain. However, several impediments still stand in the way of citizens’ enjoyment of the right to information as guaranteed […] Read more