Application of national freedom of information laws to the activities of international institutions

freedominfo.org IFTI Watch Update, January 20, 2006

Mexico Sets Precedent for Using National-Level Access Law
To Open Activities of International Financial Institutions

January 20, 2006 - Issa Luna Pla of the Mexican non-governmental organization LIMAC reports for freedominfo.org's IFTI Watch that Mexico this week established a landmark precedent for the application of national freedom of information laws to the activities of international institutions. On January 16, 2006, the Mexican National Bank of Public Works and Services released documents as ordered by the Mexican information commission last November, related to a $108 million World Bank loan to the state of Guanajuato, Mexico.

The November 16, 2005 decision by the Federal Institute for Access to Public Information (IFAI) sets a legal precedent and frees up new material about a major project to reform the water systems, the highways and the housing infrastructure in Guanajuato - the home state of Mexican President Vicente Fox, and neither the poorest Mexican state, nor one affected by emergencies and conflict. The newly released documents are currently being analyzed by Mexican NGOs.