Complying with RTI Act on foreign financing is important

Verité Research notes that foreign lenders can help improve transparency by linking their project financing to government compliance with the RTI Act

Large infrastructure projects of the government are often financed by foreign loans and grants. When the amount exceeds USD 100,000, the law requires information about the projects to be disclosed to the public online. However, compliance with the law is poor. In 2024, the government disclosed only 40% of the required information on foreign-financed projects, according to Verité Research.

This had been revealed in the 2024 update of Infrastructure Watch, which is a dashboard on PublicFinance.LK – Sri Lanka’s premier economic insights platform. This platform has tracked government compliance with the RTI Act’s proactive disclosure requirements since 2022.

Noting that corruption in public spending is often linked to public procurement, the statement added that the dashboard also shows that disclosure of procurement related information for foreign financed projects was even less – only 20% of what the law requires.

Economist and Director at Verité Research Subhashini Abeysinghe had said that “foreign lenders can help improve transparency by linking their project financing to government compliance with the Right to Information (RTI) Act”. 

Improving transparency is not only in the interest of the Sri Lankan public but also benefits lenders and contractors involved in these projects. Abeysinghe had also stated that “greater transparency not only fosters fair competition and reduces the risk of corruption, but also minimises reputational risks for lenders and contractors of being implicated in corrupt practices.”

Section 9 of the RTI Act and the guidelines published by the RTI Commission mandate the proactive disclosure of information under five broad categories: project details, rationale and beneficiaries, budget and financial details, approvals and clearances, and procurement and contracts, the statement also said. 

The 2024 assessment had looked at compliance in relation to 50 large infrastructure projects.  The dashboard can be accessed by visiting https://dashboards.publicfinance.lk/infrastructure-watch/ Large infrastructure projects of the government are often financed by foreign loans and grants. When the amount exceeds USD 100,000, the law requires information about the projects to be disclosed to the public online. However, compliance with the law is poor. In 2024, the government disclosed only 40% of the required information on foreign-financed projects, according to Verité Research.

This had been revealed in the 2024 update of Infrastructure Watch, which is a dashboard on PublicFinance.LK – Sri Lanka’s premier economic insights platform. This platform has tracked government compliance with the RTI Act’s proactive disclosure requirements since 2022.

Noting that corruption in public spending is often linked to public procurement, the statement added that the dashboard also shows that disclosure of procurement related information for foreign financed projects was even less – only 20% of what the law requires.

Economist and Director at Verité Research Subhashini Abeysinghe had said that “foreign lenders can help improve transparency by linking their project financing to government compliance with the Right to Information (RTI) Act”. 

Improving transparency is not only in the interest of the Sri Lankan public but also benefits lenders and contractors involved in these projects. Abeysinghe had also stated that “greater transparency not only fosters fair competition and reduces the risk of corruption, but also minimises reputational risks for lenders and contractors of being implicated in corrupt practices.”

Section 9 of the RTI Act and the guidelines published by the RTI Commission mandate the proactive disclosure of information under five broad categories: project details, rationale and beneficiaries, budget and financial details, approvals and clearances, and procurement and contracts, the statement also said. 

The 2024 assessment had looked at compliance in relation to 50 large infrastructure projects.  The dashboard can be accessed by visiting https://dashboards.publicfinance.lk/infrastructure-watch/