The Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Malawi chapter has extolled government for demonstrating political will on the Access to Information bill which will be operational come September 30, 2020.

Reacting to news that the minister of information Gospel Kazako has gazetted the ATI bill, MISA chairperson Teresa Ndanga said the chapter has been anticipating this and are optimistic that Malawians will utilize the ATI meaningfully.

“We are pleased with the development, this is what we have been advocating for 17 years and to finally have it come to fruition it is really good news,” she said.

“What we are hoping for now is that Malawians will fully utilize this opportunity to access information from public offices.”

Ndanga also hopes that in the 2020/2021 national budget there will be an adequate allocation of resources to the Human Rights Commission (MHRC ) to effectively oversee implementation of the Access to Information Bill.