A UNESCO meeting "Freedom of Information and Sustainable Development, Sealing the Link" held on 17 and 18 March in Paris underlined the funamental role of freedom of information for development. The meeting considered the right to access information held by public bodies and its contribution to transparency, media pluralism, good governance, empowerment and poverty eradication.
According to UNESCO, "more than 20 experts from developing countries of four continents, canvassed a range of issues central to the actual enactment of freedom of information frameworks. This included the role of civil society for the implementation of a right to information regime, and the importance of the proactive disclosure of information from public bodies in a language and in a form accessible to targeted users, including citizens in disadvantaged and remote communities."