Transparency

Transparency

The term 'trarsparency' refers to the 'increased flow of timely and reliable information, which is accessible to all the relevant stakeholders'. In other words, transparency is the dissemination of regular and accurate information. It is about making decisions and actions visible and about sharing and disclosing the necessary information to the stakeholder involved.

Transparency in Governance

Transparency in governance is the idea that the people have a right to know, what their government is doing, and the government has an obligation to provide information. It means that the criteria, process and systems of decision-making are openly known to all in public manner, For example, the selection of beneficiaries for any government scheme such as 'Skill India Mission' would be based on explicitly known and publicly communicated criteria; it will also be known as to who will apply thiese criteria, when and how? And, what benefits would accrued to those families and individuals who fit these criteria? When will these benefits accrued and at what cosits or mutual ubligations?

Thus, transpareney is about shedding light on rules, plans, processes arnd actions. It is about knowing why, how, what, and how much. It ensures that public officials, civil servants, managers, board members and businessmens act visibly understandably and report their activities. It means that the general public can hold them to accountable. A transparent government is one that provides accurate information about itself, its operations, and the country as a whole, or permits that information to be collected and made available. It upholds the idea of non-secrecy and openness of information in administration.

Concept and Fundamentals of Transparency

Transparency is sometimes more narrowly defined as the release of information which is relevant for evaluating institutions', however, transparency includes not only making information available and accessible to stakcholders, but also ensures that laws and regulations are administered and implemented in an impartial and predietable manner. Transparency is proactive effort to make information accessible to the citizens: It is about publishing information and inviting people in, to use the information in creative ways.

An organization's transparency can be measured by the 'depth of access it allows', the depth of knowledge about processes it is willing to reveal, and the attention to citizen response it provides. Transparency is one indicator of a government that is citizen-focused and service-oriented. The more transparent an organization is, the more it is willing to allow citizens to monitor its performance and to participate in its policy processes, the more is the transparency in governance.

Types/Forms of Transparency

There are two forms of transparency, i.e., agent controlled and non agent controlled transparency. The release of government information by governments can be seen as a typical instance of an agent controlled transparency, while the use of that information by external factors, such as nedia, NGOS of citizens is non-agent controlled.

The objective of governance emphasis shall not be only on the provision of information, but also the ability of external actors to demand and gain access to the information not provided routinely by political and administrative institutions, i.e. both agent-controlled and non-agent controlled transparency, but importantly, non-agent controlled transparency.

Dimensions of Transparency

Government Openness/Access to Information: Government openness is defined as the quantum of information that the government releases, i.e., the extent to which government publish information electronically or makes it available otherwise, as well as the extent to which the citizens can demand and receive information not published proactively.

Publicity of Information: There are principally two different types of information displays- Clear and Opaque. While, 'opaque' refers to the type of information which does not reveal how institutions actually behave in practice, in terms of how they make their decisions or the results of their actions, clear displays on the other hand refer to the access information on institutional performance, official responsibilities and flow of public money. Clear transparency, thereby sheds light on institutional behaviour, which permits individuals to exercise greater control over the delivery of services; they need to be explicit in terms of 'who does what and who gets what'.

Protection to Whistle-blowers: Whistle-blowing is one of the fundamental condition upon which disclosure of abuses of power rests. It is often defined as 'the disclosure by organization members (former or current) of illegal, immoral or illegitimate practices under the control of their employers, to persons or organizations that may be able to effect action', Whistle-blower protection allows individuals to disclose information despite their individual connection to, and vulnerability to retaliation from those in power.

It is the government measures aimed at protecting whistle blowers from sanctions, incentives for people to do so and more proactive laws aimed at changing organizational culture, as well as providing a conducive environment for competition and press freedom that determines the nature and scope of transparency in a country.

Significance/Importance of Transparency

Transparency as a Tool of Good Governance: Transparency is necessary to guarantee good governance. Information is valuable to the electorate for democratic processes to function successfully. Citizens have an interest in knowing about government actions and processes, allocation and redistribution of decisions, market barriers and restrictions, tax and subsidy incidences and so on.

Check Against Mismanagement and Corruption: Greater transparency may bring about lower rates of political corruption because it can facilitate legal, administrative or electoral mechanisms of punishment. Formal and informal mechanisms of transparency and accountability encourage government officials to act in the public interest. Without public access to records of governance and other information, public resources may be squandered and mismanaged.

Citizen Empowerment: Access to information is critical for enabling citizens to exercise their voice, to effectively monitor and hold government to account, and to enter into informed dialogue about decisions which affect their lives. It is seen as vital for empowering all citizens, including vulnerable and excluded people, to claim their broader rights and entitlements.

Protection of Individual Rights: It has been argued that the system of government in India is so opaque that ordinary citizens do not have much information about how decisions are made and how public resources are utilized. Here, transparency tools such as RTI, Citizen's Charter, social audit, etc., empower and enable information in the hands of the citizens in a manner that they may be able to claim their rights and entitlements.

Enhanced Citizen Participation: Transparency potentially changes the relationship between people and government officials by facilitating individual involvement in governance. It enables groups, that otherwise would not be able to participate, to participate in the governance of the country.

Basis for Accountability: It is assumed that if adequate information is not available, citizens cannot demand services and claim rights from the appropriate authorities and officials. Thus, transparency forms the basis to establish accountability.

Public Confidence: Transparent governance may create greater public trust and legitimacy in government actions.

Ensures Efficient Service Delivery: Transparency is necessary for making the system of public service delivery effective. With greater availability and accessibility of information through RTI, Citizen's Charter or e-governance platforms, people are more informed about their rights and entitlements. Meanwhile, more and better flow of information is also critical for the decentralized government to manage its own programmes to know or monitor - like health or education or road building in remote areas.

Instrumental to Economic Growth: Transparency and accountability are considered critical not only to the workings of government, but also to the success of commercial enterprise. For instance, domestic traders need transparency and accountability in the state institutions that oversee the roadways and other transportation systems and provide marketing information, among other services. International traders need confidence that border agencies are transparent and accountable, so that their transactions are not devalued by informal fees and other forms of corruption.