On the 25th of January in 2017, the Lebanese government announced its intention to join the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). This falls within government efforts to ensure that transparency and accountability enshrine the nascent oil and gas sector in Lebanon.

In order to transform the possible natural resources into sustainable growth for Lebanon, transparency including the right of citizens to access information is key. According to the Resource Governance Index (RGI), countries that promote transparency and accountability are the ones that have better management of their extractives sector as compared to countries that do not. 

On January 19, 2017 the Lebanese parliament passed the access to information law (accessible here), after having postponed ratification for nearly 9 years. While civil society is celebrating this substantial success, LOGI and in partnership with the Norwegian People Aid have decided to focus on building civil society’s ability to effectively use this tool to demand more transparency.

The document below (found in English below and in Arabic here) prepared by consultant Mr. Julien Courson, is a practical guide containing a summary of the content of the Access to Information Law. It highlights the information that the law allows citizens to access and provides a comprehensive overview of the steps that citizens need to follow in order to obtain such information. For ease of use, we have also included a sample form for requesting information.

We hope that you will find this booklet useful. For further inquiries, do not hesitate to contact  us.