TANZANIA Section 3(2) of the draft Bill provides: Subject to the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania 1977, the provisions of this Act shall override the provisions of any other enactment relating to right to information. Maximum Disclosure The stakeholders’ proposed Right to Information Bill was based on the principle of maximum disclosure with minimum exemptions guaranteed by law. This principle requires governments enacting legislation to promote freedom of information to ensure that there is maximum disclosure of information from public and private bodies. Exemptions, which are allowed for in the Bill in certain circumstances, are normally accepted only if such exemptions are clearly provided for in the law. The stakeholders’ Bill restricts the powers of public bodies to be able to deny access to information based on their personal discretion. Right to Access Information Part II of the Bill defines the right to access information, as well as setting out procedures on how to request and obtain information. Conditions and circumstances for refusal of access to information are also mentioned. If access is denied, the information seeker is entitled to appeal at a higher level within the same organisation. A second appeal can be made to the Information Commission. Any aggrieved party may refer the matter further to the High Court to review the legality of the decision of the Commission. Appointment of Information Officers The draft Bill imposes a duty on every institution, whether public or private, to appoint or designate an ‘information desk officer’ who will be responsible for providing information. The information officer will also handle all complaints concerning the provision of information from that institution. The information officer position does not necessarily mean recruitment of new staff; anyone within the organisation could be so designated, provided that person is conversant with available information within the institution. Duty to Publish Information The draft Bill imposes a duty on every public or private body to publish key information relevant to its activities. The recently established Commission of Information is empowered to make regulations regarding this obligation. Disclosure of Information of Public Interest This allows for the disclosure of exempt information on the grounds that it is in the public interest to disclose such information. Whistleblowers are also protected against actions and unfair treatment because of their voluntary disclosure of certain information. The main condition for people to be considered whistleblowers and bonafide informers is that they should act in good faith for the purpose of unearthing wrongdoing such as corruption, pilferage of public property and danger to the environment or public health. New Institutions This establishes new institutions that would be responsible for all issues relating to access to information. The Commission of Information was established with a mandate of implementing and supervising effective implementation of the law. The appointment procedure and qualifications of members of the Commission and of the appointments’ committee is laid down in the draft Bill. Another body proposed by the draft Bill is an independent stakeholders’ forum. RATIONALE AND RESEARCH PARAMETERS MISA Tanzania joined other MISA Chapters in participating in a study to establish the most open and secretive government institutions in each respective country. The study started on the 16th of June and was concluded on 7th of July 2014. Six of the eight participating institutions were randomly picked depending on the relevance of their mandated work. The other two – the Ministry of Energy and Minerals and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare – were selected because they were the best and worst performers respectively from last year’s study, and MISA Tanzania wanted to see if there has been any significant change with respect to their openness since the last study was conducted. Selected Ministries included: 1. Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MoHSW) 2. Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) 3. Ministry of Energy and Minerals (MEM) 4. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) Selected agencies included: 5. The Judiciary of Tanzania 6. National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) 7. National Identification Authority (NIDA) 8. The Parliament of Tanzania (BUNGE) RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The research adopts qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection, and seeks to evaluate the level of public access to information held by government and public institutions. Each MISA Chapter conducts research by evaluating the websites of government and public institutions along with submitting oral and written requests for information. This method seeks to establish the transparency and efficiency of government and public institutions in providing information to the public. DATA ANALYSIS Category 1: Evaluation of government and public institution websites to determine the access and presence of credible and updated public information, which includes but is not limited to: powers and functions of the institution in question; vacancy and budgetary allocations; procurement procedures and contact details and reports. Category 2: This category was divided into two sections, namely written questionnaires and oral requests for information. These instruments were adopted to determine the ease with which public information is obtained from government and public institutions. 91