Nothing to see here: central government lagging on right to information

Information Commissioner Ahid Rasheed told the Maldives Independent it was telling that the list of compliant organisations features ten local councils, some courts and independent institutions, but no ministries or state-owned enterprises. 

“We found that councils are willing to work closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). We don’t see that with institutions in Malé,” Ahid said, suggesting a culture of transparency had yet to take hold across recent governments, with successive presidents showing little interest in the ICO's work.  

“Unless the government takes this as a priority or has a drive to achieve this, this will not happen. In Maldives, unless someone from the top gives a push, things don’t happen,” said Ahid.

The RTI Act requires all state bodies to proactively disclose certain information, without waiting for requests. Section 36 mandates the disclosure of basic details about designated information officers - their names, titles, and contact information. Section 37 goes considerably further, requiring institutions to publish details of their functions, organisational structure and the services they provide to the public. 

Beyond that, institutions must provide details of complaint procedures, accountability mechanisms, the information they hold and how the public can request it. Senior officials are required to have their responsibilities, powers and decision-making processes laid bare. Decisions that affect the public must be explained and citizens must be told how they can provide input. Financial transparency is also mandated, including budgets, expenditures and employee salaries. On paper, it is a comprehensive framework. But are public bodies actually living up to it?

City councils that have achieved full compliance include Fuvahmulah and Kulhudhuffushi city councils, as have island authorities in Haa Alif Muraidhoo, Shaviyani Maa’ungoodhoo and Feydhoo as well as Meemu Mulaku. Before their abolition, atoll councils in Haa Alif, Shaviyani, Meemu and Laamu had achieved full compliance. The Tax Appeal Tribunal, the drug court and the family court have also met their RTI obligations, along with the Maldives Pension Administration Office, the ⁠⁠Elections Commission and, this year, the Local Government Authority (LGA). 

Ahid said the reason the executive branch is lagging behind is unclear. He acknowledged that a larger work flow may mean they are unable to dedicate the time, but said the ICO felt it was because “they don’t see the importance of this”, he said. “The reality is that we see more willingness with the councils”.

With three city councils and 177 island councils among those yet to meet RTI requirements, Ahid said local authorities’ drive to fully comply was often thwarted by practical issues. “Some of the smaller councils do not have the capacity to run a website or update the existing one,” he said. Reflecting this gap, the ICO accepts disclosure through Facebook for institutions that lack a functioning website. But Ahid said most councils were simply unaware this was something they had to do.

“When we share the way forward, they do it. But we have to follow up asking how it's going. Because they have to attend to day-to-day responsibilities, this slides off their priority list so they need an external push. It is only in very few councils where this is not considered a priority,” continued Ahid. 

He said that if the ICO is able to work in-person with councils there is a high chance they will comply. The ICO does get such requests for assistance,  but its budget is tight and councils must help to bear the costs, he added. In 2024, the US-funded International Republican Institute’s (IRI) worked with the ICO on proactive disclosure compliance, joining them on visits to island councils. IRI ceased operations in 2025 as US funding came to a halt. 

Even though atoll councils were abolished with the amendments to the Decentralization Act in December, they had performed well in proactive disclosure compliance. Previously, atoll councils had shared capacity with island level authorities to assist with RTI demands. The new structure gives the LGA discretion to set up local offices in capital islands, meaning current atoll council offices may become regional offices for the LGA with the same civil servants and resources. 

Given the LGA has not yet begun setting up these local offices, Ahid said it was unclear whether this RTI support will continue. “The fear is if it becomes too centralised it could become a place the central government very much uses to give directions.” Conversely, a stronger local LGA presence could result in greater emphasis on RTI obligations. Indeed, the LGA itself is among the few fully compliant institutions, but there has been little enthusiasm in the capital. 

Two-and-a-half years after President Mohamed Muizzu was sworn in, the ICO has yet to meet with him. Engagement with the President’s Office is “zero”, Ahid said, revealing it had been well over a year since the ICO requested a meeting with its Strategic Communications Minister Ibrahim Khaleel. “The President’s Office has not shown any interest in having a dialogue with us or speaking with us,” Ahid said, though he pointed out things were much the same under the previous government. 

After being appointed as commissioner under President Solih, Ahid said both administrations were similar in their lack of proactive disclosure and engagement. He did, however, note that a request from Solih’s office for all government institutions to publish service charters within two weeks had brought results, suggesting these would still be pending if the request had come from an independent commission. 

In other countries, like India, a section in the president’s office will push other institutions to comply, he said, observing this prioritisation was lacking from the top-level of government in the Maldives. There are some examples of central authorities, such as the health ministry helping island health centres with capacity for disclosure, he added, suggesting the education ministry could offer similar support for schools. 

But, as ministries themselves have not reached full compliance with the proactive disclosure requirements, Ahid said a bad message was being sent. He argues there are not the same capacity challenges for the executive as there may be for smaller magistrate courts or councils, suggesting it is the will that is lacking, as demonstrated by the President’s Office’s performance on broader RTI compliance.

Once an entity receives an RTI request it has up to 35 days to respond. If the response is unsatisfactory, the applicant can appeal to the relevant body’s review committee and, if still not satisfied, can escalate their complaint to the ICO, which then begins hearings. When these concern the President’s Office, Ahid notes that hearings are often postponed at the last minute before inadequate responses are rushed out.

The ICO has 62 pending cases with the President’s Office, with Ahid revealing that, since November, it has ​​requested for postponement of hearings ten times. Only nine hearings have been held during this period. Data from the ICO’s Mahoali portal, an online platform launched to streamline RTI applications, says there have been 93 RTI requests to the President’s Office this year with just six processed within the mandated time frame. 

This malaise is reflected in the ICO’s own institutional problems, as it has struggled to resolve living allowances for its staff, whose salaries are among the lowest of all independent public bodies. Ahid said the commission has been trying to meet to discuss the issue with the finance minister since October. 

A monthly allowance of MVR 3,000 (US$ 194) per staff member had been provided from January 2024, helping to offset additional costs incurred as staff were forced to work from home since last May due to the poor condition of their office in the Billoorijehige building. After securing budget approval through parliament, the allowance – standard in other institutions – has become blocked. “But the Pay Commission still has not provided authorization,” said Ahid. “They have not said yes nor have they said no, they just haven’t responded.” Without this allowance, staff are being forced to move on. “Last year, turnover was really really high. I’m losing a lot of staff,” Ahid said.

The team will begin moving to new offices this week, while Ahid’s term as commissioner ends on September 5. While the Majlis can re-appoint him, he is working on a five-year strategic plan that could provide direction to his potential successor. He suggests that, just like acceptance of other rights like freedom of assembly or association, the right to information will take more time to become embedded within public institutions.

“The whole idea of RTI is for all public authorities to recognise that all the information they have belongs to the people. They are the custodians of that information,” he said, adding that the current culture is for information to be protected for the government. 

“The biggest challenge in Maldives is changing this flawed thinking,” he said. “It is a very flawed idea that information needs to be protected from the public. RTI is the exact opposite of this. The information belongs to the public, the protection required is to maintain it properly.”