A new report by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) has raised significant concerns over the slow implementation of the Access to Information Act by federal ministries.
According to FAFEN’s findings, most of the country’s federal ministries have not fully enforced the crucial law, which is intended to promote transparency and public access to essential government information.
The report reveals that none of the 40 divisions under the 33 federal ministries has implemented Section 5 of the Access to Information Act, which mandates the proactive disclosure of essential information to the public.
The failure to comply with this key provision has raised alarms over the spread of disinformation in the absence of accurate and accessible government data.
The Cabinet and Interprovincial Liaison Divisions are reported to have made the most progress, with an implementation rate of 42 percent. However, the remaining ministries show far less commitment to the law's enforcement.
Notably, ministries such as Establishment, Petroleum, National Heritage, Revenue, Interior, and Planning have managed to implement only up to 40 percent of the required provisions.
The Commerce, Education, Foreign Affairs, Religious Affairs, and Water Resources ministries have achieved 35 percent implementation, while the Climate Change and IT and Telecommunications Divisions stand at 31 percent.
Meanwhile, 13 federal divisions, including Aviation, Defense, Economic Affairs, Energy, Human Rights, and Parliamentary Affairs, have an implementation rate ranging from 21 to 30 percent.
The Finance, Industry and Production, and Food Security Divisions fare even worse, with a meager implementation rate of 23 percent. The worst-performing ministries include Housing, Information, Ports, Narcotics Control, Health, and Overseas Pakistanis, all of which have managed only 19 percent implementation.
The National Security, Kashmir Affairs, and Border and State Affairs Divisions have an even lower implementation rate of 15 percent, and the Poverty Alleviation Division's performance is deemed the poorest, at just 8 percent.
Despite these shortcomings, FAFEN’s report highlighted that 19 ministries responded to their inquiry, with 14 failing to provide any information on their implementation progress.
