THE Board of Directors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved the launch of a public consultation process to obtain robust feedback from all interested parties about its proposal to adopt a new Access to Information policy, which aims to increase transparency, enhance corporate governance and improve accountability.

The public consultation comes as the IDB, whose transparency standards already rank among the highest of any international financial institution, aims to increase transparency and trust not just at the bank, but also across the whole of Latin America and the Caribbean.

As IDB research shows, trust and transparency are vital to economic development and the IDB aims to lead the region by example, showing that the bank itself is committed to adhering to the highest standards of transparency and accountability, a release said.

The public consultation also comes after the IDB, in 2019, launched a review of its Access to Information policy and approved a Policy Profile that was submitted for public consultation. Based on the outcome of that consultation, and following recommendations from the IDB’s Policy Evaluation Committee, the bank presented a new policy proposal to the Board of Executive Directors in April 2022.

The new policy proposal aims to maximise access to information by adopting clearer language, reducing exceptions to disclosure policies, facilitating procedures, and making it easier and more efficient for people to ask questions and get answers.

The public consultation will consist of three phases, details of which will be shared through the Public Consultation Process Portal. The IDB is inviting all interested parties to participate in the process and offer feedback about how the bank can improve its Access to Information Policy.

To engage with the widest possible audience, the IDB will carry out a virtual consultation session open to receive inputs for a wide range of organisations, as well as multiple real time meetings with civil society organisations working on transparency, open government and access to information related issues to receive technical comments, the release noted.

Interested individuals and institutions can register online to receive updates and participate in the public consultation process. They can also submit feedback via email and visit the following webpage for more information: https://www.iadb.org/en/access-information/access-information-policy-update.