A TEAM FROM Transparency International Vanuatu recently visited and traveled around 
the island of Erromango to consult with the people and to gather their opinions on the Bill for the Right To Information Act which has been listed to be tabled next week during the 2nd Extraordinary Session of Parliament.
The team spoke to over 990 people and informed them on the contents of the Bill as well as how the Bill will impact their lives when it becomes law. A lot of questions were asked on the island about the Right To Information (RTI) Bill and the consultation team responded to their queries thoroughly.
The community consultations on the island of Erromango were conducted from the 2nd to the 8th of November, and approximately fifty one percent (51%) of the population on the island were informed of the RTI Bill (Erromango Pop: 1,950 – According to 2009 National Census). The other forty nine percent (49%) of the population the team could not reach them due to their work commitments and timely constraints.
At the end of each consultation sessions each community what they would want their Member of Parliament (MP) to do when the RTI Bill was tabled in Parliament and a hundred percent (100%) of them agreed that their MP must vote in favor of the RTI Bill because that is what they want.
The response is similar in all the islands that Transparency International Vanuatu has visited to conduct the RTI Bill community consultations; islands like Vanualava, Malekula, Santo, Ambrym, Pentecost, Ambae, Tanna, Efate Offshore Islands, and several more.
The ongoing RTI Bill community consultations are funded by the Pacific Leadership Program (PLP) who supports Transparency International Vanuatu’s work with the Government’s Right to Information (RTI) Unit to raise awareness and promote public interest in the RTI Policy and Bill. PLP’s support has enabled TIV to campaign in communities and schools and host public forums on the RTI Policy and Bill, using its strong networks in the provinces.
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