How to Request a Public Record Under the Freedom of Information Act

Before you start

You need a few things ready before you write your request. Gather these items first.

• The exact title of the record – the name of the budget, report, minutes, or contract you want.
• The name and address of the public institution – the ministry, department, agency, or local government that holds the record.
• Your full name and a contact address – a postal address or email where the institution can send its reply.
• Plain paper and an envelope – for the printed letter.
• Postage – for registered mail, or the means to visit the office in person.

Steps

1. Identify the public institution that holds the record. Check the institution’s website or visit its office to confirm the correct department and the address for correspondence.
2. Write the request letter. Use a formal letter format. Start with your name and address, then the date, then the institution’s name and address.
3. State that you are making the request under the Freedom of Information Act, 2011. Write the exact title of the record you are asking for. Describe the record clearly if the title is not specific enough.
4. Say how you want to receive the record – as a photocopy, a digital scan, or to inspect the original at the office.
5. Include your phone number and email address so the institution can contact you with questions.
6. Sign the letter and print your name clearly underneath the signature.
7. Make two copies of the signed letter. Keep one copy for your records.
8. Submit the original letter. Send it by registered post to the institution’s correspondence address, or deliver it by hand to the office and ask for a dated receipt.
9. Record the date you submitted the request. Write it on your copy of the letter.
10. Wait for the institution’s reply. The Freedom of Information Act gives public institutions seven days to acknowledge your request and 30 days to give you the record or a written reason for refusal.

What to do if it goes wrong

Sometimes a request meets a problem. Here is what to do for common issues.

• The office refuses to receive your letter. Ask for the name of the officer who refused. Note the date and time. You can submit the same letter to the institution’s headquarters or a different department.
• You receive no acknowledgement after seven days. Write a follow-up letter referring to your first letter by its date. Send it by registered post. Keep the postal receipt.
• You receive a refusal after 30 days. Read the reason given. If the reason is not one listed in the Freedom of Information Act, you can write an appeal letter to the head of the institution.
• The institution says the record does not exist. Ask which office or agency might hold a similar record. You can submit a new request to that office.

What you should end with

When your request works, you will hold a written reply from the public institution. The reply should either give you the record you asked for or state a lawful reason for not giving it. If you receive the record, you also have proof that the method works – a public document in your hands, obtained through a formal, written process.

What WATAG does with this

WATAG trains women to use this method in the Government Accountability programme. Participants learn to identify which public office holds a specific record. They practise writing a formal request letter under the Freedom of Information Act. They walk through the steps of submission and tracking. The training uses real examples of public records a community might want to see.