In January-August, tacit refusals by government agencies to provide  information increased by 10.5%

ArmInfo. From January to August of this year, tacit refusals by government agencies to provide information increased by 10.5%. This was stated in a statement by the Freedom of Information Center.

On the occasion of International Freedom of Information Day,  celebrated annually on September 28, the non-governmental  organization presented key issues in this area that require immediate  solutions.

The Freedom of Information Center identified incomplete and  unsubstantiated responses as one of the key problems. "In some cases,  government agencies holding information provide incomplete or general  responses to information requests. Although applicants receive  responses within the legally established timeframes, the requested  information is not actually received. In many cases, refusals are  unsubstantiated or inadequately substantiated. This year, the number  of tacit refusals has increased significantly - 10.5%, according to  data for January-August 2025," the statement reads. Another problem  raised by the NGO is the failure to provide information on time. "At  least half of requests for information are responded to after the  deadline has passed. There have been cases where responses to  requests were provided several months later. Furthermore, government  agencies sometimes abuse the right to redirect information, as well  as the right to delay responses established by law, without proper  justification. Almost every other request receives a response within  an additional 30 days, which is a serious obstacle, especially for  the professional activities of journalists," the Center emphasized.

Insufficient proactive advertising is also cited as a problem. It is  noted that many government agencies fail to publish information  required by law in a timely and complete manner, or publish it  incompletely, while the format, timing, and content of publications  make the information unclear, inaccessible, or unusable.

The Freedom of Information Center also noted the ineffective use of  digital tools (e-request.am), the lack of unified statistics, and the  absence of an independent authorized body or freedom of information  commissioner.

"Citizens lack a fast and effective mechanism for extrajudicial  protection, and court appeals are time- consuming and expensive. The  importance of an extrajudicial mechanism is also mentioned in the 5th  report of the Council of Europe's Group of States against Corruption  (GRECO), in which recommendations for Armenia include an independent  assessment of the implementation of freedom of information  legislation, the publication of statistics on refusals, and the  creation of an independent oversight body. The government's passivity  exacerbates systemic problems and hinders the full implementation of  the RA Law on Freedom of Information," the Center stated.