The 9th meeting of the Working Group on Access to Information of the Aarhus Convention, dedicated to access to information, public participation in decision-making processes, and access to justice in environmental matters, is being held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on November 7-8.

Mane Madoyan, program coordinator at the Freedom of Information Center, is also participating in the meeting. The FOICA representative addressed the challenges and opportunities of disseminating environmental information through online platforms in Armenia.

In her speech, Madoyan presented observations from both FOICA and Armenian partners of the Aarhus Eco Forum—namely, “Khazer” NGO and the “Dalma-Sona” Foundation—regarding Armenia’s existing electronic platforms and tools, the opportunities they offer, and the associated technical and content issues, along with potential solutions.

The issues particularly concern the overly technical language used on the platforms, formats that hinder data usability, limited data interoperability mechanisms, and the use of inconsistent formats and data collection methodologies by various government bodies. These challenges restrict access to certain data for academic and civil society communities, as well as for state administration bodies.

In this context, M. Madoyan emphasized the importance of having a dedicated strategy for the promotion and public dissemination of electronic platforms within the framework of their development, as well as the availability of financial resources necessary for its implementation.

“The strategy should include both awareness-raising and capacity-building components, enabling all target groups to make more efficient use of the opportunities provided by these platforms,” emphasized FOICA’s program coordinator.

She also noted the importance of involving various professional communities in decision-making processes regarding access mechanisms for specific sectorial data, especially in the development, design, and implementation of unified data management mechanisms.

The FOICA representative also highlighted key obstacles that hinder the work of organizations and experts in environmental protection, as well as journalists covering the field, from effectively utilizing registry data for research in environmental studies.

At the meeting, FOICA also presented to its partners the findings of research conducted with the support of the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) on the transparency reform and registry of beneficial ownership (BFI) implemented in Armenia, along with steps aimed at addressing identified issues regarding access to BFI data.

The full speech of FOICA program coordinator Mane Madoyan can be found here.