International Day for the Universal Access to Information

President of Ghana John Dramani Mahama addresses UNESCO.

Access to Info Day celebrated all over the world !

The celebrations of the first International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI) have kicked off with IPDC Talks on September 26 at UNESCO’s headquarters. The event brought together a dozen of dynamic speakers that made links between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the issues of information, media and ICTs.

This year, more than 20 countries are commemorating #AccessToInfoDay by organizing conferences and public activities to discuss and raise awareness about freedom of information, promotion of open access and the importance of adopting right to information laws, among some of the relevant topics.

2016 is the first year of UNESCO marking 28 September as the “International Day for Universal Access to Information” (IDUAI). On 17 November 2015, UNESCO adopted a resolution (38 C/70) declaring 28 September of every year as International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI).

IDUAI has particular relevance with the new 2030 Development Agenda, and in particular with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 16.10 which calls for ensuring public access to information and protection of fundamental freedoms.