SECTOR 1 Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 4.0 (2005 = 1.0, 2007 = 1.7, 2009 =1.0) 1.8 Public information is easily accessible, guaranteed by law, to all citizens. Kenya’s new constitution guarantees access to information but in practice information remains largely inaccessible to the wider public. In the civil service, only the permanent secretary, who is often not easily reachable, can speak on behalf of the government. There is an official spokesperson but his/her job is essentially to manage information in tune with his/her own agenda, or in the interest of the top ruling elite, rather than helping the public get the information they desire. Every now and then, the Official Secrets Act can be used to deny information to an applicant. Furthermore, where a member of the public is asked to make a formal request for information, the process takes so long that if the information is ever released, it is dated and worthless. A great deal of civic information is, nevertheless, available to the public either in the Kenya Gazette, or on government websites as accessible files that are easy to download or pasted on notice boards outside public offices. Generally, such information is more easily available and more accessible to urban dwellers than to rural folk. In some rural areas, members of the public are often forced to pay for information that is available for free on the internet, such as downloadable forms, since they lack the knowledge to take advantage of the free services. The Kenya Gazette, which contains a great deal of government information, is sold at KSh50 (about US$0.62) but this is still expensive for many. More ‘sensitive’ information is scarce and hard to obtain for all citizens, including journalists. Most public officials have held on to the norms of past Kenyan regimes which required a good measure of “self-preservation” in releasing information or speaking publicly. Moreover, applicants for information must state what they need the information for. 20 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER KENYA 2012