ZAMBIA

SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS

Category 2: Requests for information

The findings show that disseminating information
by public organisations in Zambia, based on
requests from ordinary citizens, is a challenge. The
surveyed institutions were possibly unsure about
using the information and feared releasing it.

y

Most organisations immediately acknowledged
the request for information and told the
researcher that the appropriate office would
respond.

y

The first contact officers were not decisionmakers in the release of information, as the
researcher was referred to either the human
resource office, public relations officer,
research department or an analyst.

y

Most request recipients initially showed
enthusiasm in responding as the researcher
had face-to-face interviews with them.
However, despite promises to get in touch,
they did not contact the researcher again.

y

Four organisations did not respond to the
requests for information.

Category 1: Website analysis
y

y

Almost all the organisations surveyed have
functional websites (except for the Disaster
Management and Mitigation Unit, which does
not have a website and utilises that of the
Office of the Vice President).
The information on the websites is userfriendly, which makes it easy for the public to
find information.

y

All the organisations are active on social media
platforms, especially Facebook and X (formally
Twitter), and frequently post updates.

y

Although contact details are published,
no details are provided for the specific
officer or office responsible for information
dissemination (except for the Energy
Regulation Board, which has an email address
for the public relations office).

93

Select target paragraph3