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The policies of multilateral development institutions, such as the Asian Development Bank, affect individual lives. ADB sponsors development activities designed to improve the lives of people in its developing member countries. Increased access to information helps ADB become accountable to the people it affects, and it commits to doing so in its public communications policy (PCP), which took effect in September 2005.
As a public finance institution, ADB wants to be publicly accountable. ADB-supported development activities are paid for by citizens of its member countries, so it recognizes that ADB needs to be transparent with the public. Officials of finance ministries and aid ministries, and political leaders need reassurance not only that their taxpayers’ money is effectively spent, but also that the public understands this to be the case.
Transparency is pivotal to such accountability, and the PCP heralds an ambitious shift toward sharing information. The PCP’s new rules for increased transparency and disclosure of information about its operations enable ADB’s stakeholders to hold ADB staff and decision makers “in check” for the work that they do, and the decisions they make jointly with member country governments. By working closely and transparently with ADB on development initiatives, member country governments can, in turn, more easily be held accountable for the decisions they make on behalf of the citizens they represent.
The PCP directly supports the right of people to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas about ADB’s activities. Among its unique features, it proactively makes information publicly available by posting it on the internet, and not only as the result of a request.
In developing the policy, ADB reviewed all the documents it regularly produces—or requires borrowers and project sponsors to produce. ADB asked the question: “What is the harm of releasing this document?”
ADB does not try to guess what the public wants or needs, which is an impossible task. People should be able to find the information they want. The PCP requires ADB to make documents it produces publicly available unless doing so will result in harm to ADB, its members, or another organization that entrusted ADB with the information. This puts the responsibility on ADB staff to defend why information cannot be released.
How is “harm” determined? The PCP has a defined list of confidentiality criteria against which all information is compared. If the information ADB holds is not subject to clear confidentiality criteria, it must be disclosed. The PCP even favors disclosure of sensitive information if the public’s interest in receiving the information outweighs the harm that may be caused to ADB.
By leapfrogging other international development organizations, the PCP puts ADB in pace with a global movement toward greater transparency and disclosure. ADB believes that greater awareness and understanding of its objectives and activities will help generate public trust.
The PCP also favors “redaction” rather than keeping the document confidential—that is, removing the confidential parts and releasing the rest. And ADB will not withhold information simply because it is negative; it will report failures and disappointments, as well as successes.
Without the provision of timely, relevant, accessible information, the effectiveness of consultations with communities in which projects are undertaken will be seriously reduced
Since ADB cannot presuppose what information the public wants, it commits to responding to any request for information. ADB has strict time limits for responding to information requests. All requests must be acknowledged within 5 working days, and fulfilled within 30 calendar days. If a request is denied, ADB provides the requester with the reason based on the PCP’s confidentiality criteria. The list of requests received is posted on ADB’s website.
If a person thinks his or her request has been unreasonably denied, or that ADB has interpreted the PCP incorrectly, she or he has a recourse—the Public Disclosure Advisory Committee will address complaints regarding information disclosure and the PCP.
ADB regularly monitors the policy to ensure that it operates in accordance with its principles and rules. Reports on the policy’s implementation will be produced and disclosed annually.
Without the provision of timely, relevant, accessible information, the effectiveness of consultations with communities in which projects are undertaken will be seriously reduced. Information will allow affected people to analyze properly the advantages and disadvantages of a project and to contribute more effectively to discussions on design and implementation. This process will ensure greater public accountability of projects, and lead to better and more sustainable projects.
Overall, the PCP ensures that much more information will be available to the public in the early stages of policies, country strategies, or projects—before decisions are made and the public can no longer influence the development initiatives that affect them. By sharing information, people can better participate in decision making. ADB also commits to posting quarterly the status of the performance of its projects.
ADB recognizes that those who need information do not necessarily have access to the internet. Early in the design of projects, ADB will work closely with the borrower or project sponsor to ensure information is provided to affected local residents in an understandable manner and feedback sought. A focal point will also be designated for regular contact.
Organizations such as national-level civil society groups increasingly want to be involved in their country’s development strategy. ADB enables this involvement by requiring that draft country strategies and programs be disclosed to in-country stakeholders.
A transparent organization is one that opens up the process through which decisions are made—from the operational, to the policy, to the strategic levels. ADB regularly consults a wide range of groups before adopting or revising new operational policies and strategies, and now requires that draft policy and strategy papers be routinely posted on its website.
The PCP also demonstrates a progressive shift toward better transparency of ADB’s main governing body by posting the forthcoming schedule of Board of Directors’ meetings, and minutes and summaries of Board discussions. By providing basic information on what ADB is doing and how well it is doing it through financial statements, annual reports, and performance evaluations, ADB is allowing stakeholders to monitor its activities and hold it to account for its actions, goals, and objectives.
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