Freedom of Information Center of Armenia.

The Freedom of Information Center has placed 246 bulletin boards in 53 Armenian urban and rural communities during 2007-2012.

One of the most important things in the freedom of information field is that publicly important information be published by the state bodies on their own initiative. For this purpose, FOI, supported by USAID, provides bulletin boards to rural and urban communities for placing community-related information subject to publication.
These bulletin boards are a flexible, uncostly and efficient means to make the information subject to obligatory publication by the local self government bodies accessible.

The information placed on the bulletin boards consists of two parts: changeable and unchangeable. The unchangeable part provides the main provisions of the RA law “On Freedom of Information”, information on how a citizen can exercise his/her right to receiving information, and an exemplary form of request for information. In the unchangeable part of the board, necessary information is provided on the community’s budget, report on budget fulfillment, copies of the decisions by community leaders or councils of elders, sessions of community elders, etc. This section of the board is to be updated on a permanent basis.

Within the scope of this process, a memorandum has been signed between the FOI President and community heads, under which the community heads undertake to periodically (at least once a month) update the information published on the boards as well as ensure the awareness of the community’s population about the boards. Community heads have undertaken to ensure that the boards will be used exclusively for public purposes, meaning that placement of advertisements is to be strictly prohibited.

Another 24 bulletin boards will be placed in 4 communities by 2013.