Culture of Access to Information (BR0126)

Brief description of the commitment

Fostering a culture of access to information and improving compliance with the LAI in the country, through coordination and collaboration between public authorities and society.

Problem Definition

1. What problem does the commitment aim to solve?

The commitment seeks to tackle the difficulty in expanding and equalizing compliance with the LAI in all powers and spheres of the country. Since its publication in 2011, the LAI has aimed to guarantee the constitutional right to request and obtain information from public bodies and entities. However, the lack of agreement, the deficiency in the training of public agents on the limits of the law, as well as the fragile engagement of civil society in its use and monitoring compromise compliance with the LAI and make it difficult to hold them accountable when they violate it.

2. What causes the problem?

Among the obstacles hindering the expansion of and compliance with the LAI are the following: • Difficulty in standardizing understandings across all spheres of the federation; • Lack of coordination between agents (federated entities and society) to promote the LAI; • Lack of training/strengthening of civil society actors to disseminate the culture of public transparency in society; • High disparity in the operational/technical/conceptual capacity of the federated entities to comply with the LAI.

Commitment Description

1. What has been done so far to solve the problem?

CGU, as the central branch of the Federal Executive Branch’s Internal Control System, performs various functions to guarantee the effectiveness of the LAI in all government bodies. Some relevant actions include: • Promoting the LAI in the states and municipalities: CGU is not just restricted to the federal level. Through partnerships and decentralized actions, the CGU has sought to stimulate the implementation of the LAI in states and municipalities, contributing to a culture of transparency throughout the country. For example, the Transparencia Brasil (Transparency Brazil) Scale methodology, consists of checking whether municipalities are meeting the transparency and access to information requirements of Law 12.527/2011. The methodology includes a process of self-assessment, scoring, and classification. The information is made available on the Transparencia Brasil Map. In the latest edition, all states, capitals, and municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants were evaluated (based on 2017 IBGE estimates). In all, 691 entities were evaluated. • Orientation and Training: CGU has promoted courses, seminars and events to train civil servants at all levels of government on the application of the LAI. These initiatives aim to clarify the principles of the law and highlight the importance of access to information. • Development of technological tools: CGU has invested in technology to facilitate access to information. Online platforms and information systems have been developed and made available to other entities to optimize the processing of requests, speeding up the response process by public bodies. At the federal level, monitoring the implementation of the LAI has shown that the actions are successful, with more than 1 million requests received and 99.64% answered. The average response time is 14.56 days, with 69.45% of requests granted.

2. What solution are you proposing?

The creation of a national access to information network can play a key role in the effective implementation of the Access to Information Law (LAI) by states and municipalities. This network can facilitate the dissemination of good practices, promote training, provide technical support, and establish common standards, contributing to a culture of transparency throughout the country. In addition, the national network can be an instrument to promote the sharing of guidelines and understandings for the implementation of the LAI, ensuring consistency and efficiency in the procedures adopted by states and municipalities. This simplifies the understanding and application of the legislation at different levels of government, while also coordinating campaigns and events on the subject. As part of setting up the national network, mechanisms will also be devised for: • o Mapping strategic actors in the LAI ecosystem and their practices and tools; • Sharing Successful Experiences: The network can serve as an environment for sharing successful experiences between different government entities. States and municipalities can learn from each other, identifying effective approaches to proactively disseminating information, handling requests, and overcoming specific challenges; • Capacity Building and Training: The network can offer capacity building and training programs for public servants in states and municipalities. This is crucial to ensure that officials are aware of LAI obligations, understand information disclosure processes, and know how to properly handle access requests; • The Development of Shared Technological Resources: Implementing technological solutions can be costly for smaller entities. A national network can facilitate the development and sharing of technological platforms and resources to manage information requests, promoting efficiency and reducing costs; • Joint Evaluation: The network can play an important role in collaborative monitoring, as well as diagnosing compliance with the LAI by the different federal entities. This would involve evaluating reports, identifying common challenges, and collaborating in the search for solutions. Through these actions, the aim is to strengthen the Culture of Transparency: By promoting the implementation of the LAI in states and municipalities, the network contributes to strengthening a culture of transparency throughout the country. This not only complies with democratic principles but also increases citizens’ trust in government institutions. These actions expand on previous efforts. It is considered that the network will be an environment for promoting and expanding activities, sharing tools, and collaboration between the federated entities. Given the voluntary nature of the coordination projects between the federated entities, the solution may address some of the problems identified. However, the entities that voluntarily engage in the activities will have access to the shared instruments and strategies. In this way, it is hoped that disparities in the operational capacity to implement the LAI will be reduced, promoting the dissemination of a culture of transparency.

3. What results do we want to achieve by implementing this commitment?

The main results expected from the commitment are: • Effective partnership with civil society for actions to monitor compliance with the LAI; • Articulation to improve compliance with the LAI in all entities and powers; • Creation of a culture of social participation via the LAI; • Key officials mapped and certified in LAI; • Increase in the number of municipalities with regulated LAI; • Better compliance with active transparency obligations.

Commitment Analysis

1. How will the commitment promote transparency? Improving LAI compliance in the country, through articulation and collaboration between public authorities at all levels and society.

2. How commitment will help promote accountability?

3. How will the commitment improve citizen participation in defining, implementing, and monitoring solutions? Citizens will be represented by Civil Society Organizations that will participate in the activities carried out within the scope of the Network. In addition, they will be an extremely important link for its creation, through mobilization, dissemination, and engagement by entities.

Commitment Planning (Milestone | Expected Results | Expected Completion Date)

Milestone 1 - Map strategic agents of the LAI ecosystem and their practices and tools | Mapping carried out. | May/2024

Milestone 2 - Network creation (collaborative structuring of the network) define incentives, strategies to encourage adherence Define the network’s governance and operation identify network models, strengths, and weaknesses | Network created | December/ 2024

Milestone 3 - Structuring training materials on the LAI for federated entities | Structured training materials | December /2024

Milestone 4 - Systematize understandings about the application of the LAI in the federal government | Systematized understandings | December /2024

Milestone 5 - Repository of good practices and tools for stakeholders | Repository created | April/2025

Milestone 6 - Design a collaborative monitoring model | A Collaborative monitoring model designed | June/2025

Milestone 7 - Comparative diagnosis of similar challenges in the application of the LAI among the powers | Diagnosis carried out | June/2025

Milestone 8 - Carry out a diagnosis on the implementation of the LAI by states and municipalities | Diagnosis made | July/2025

Milestone 9 - Disseminate understanding on the application of the LAI in the National Network with the aim of consolidating agreed guidelines | Understanding disseminated | December /2025

Milestone 10 - Disseminate citizen education resources | Resources disseminated | December /2025

Milestone 11 - Include LAI compliance items in the Governance and Management Index | LAI compliance items included in the Governance and Management Index | December /2025

Milestone 12 - Reference guide on active transparency for states, municipalities, and the Federal District | Reference guide drawn up | May/2026

Milestone 13 - Campaign on access to information, transparency, and citizenship | Campaign carried out | June/2027