This network consists of Australian and New Zealand information access authorities who administer freedom of information legislation. Members meet twice a year to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and resources, foster cooperation and innovation in proactive disclosure, information access, related information policy and open government initiatives and promote best practice among the authorities.

Open by design principles - joint statement by members of the AIAC

On 24 September 2021 members of the AIAC issued a Statement of Principles to support proactive disclosure of government-held information.

Joint statements by members of the AIAC

16/11/2023: Association of Information Access Commissioners of Australia and New Zealand (AIAC) meeting communique - 3 November 2023, Perth, Australia
28/09/2023: Information Commissioners and Ombudsmen recognise importance of the online space in accessing information
27/09/2023: Results on Cross-Jurisdictional Community Attitudes Survey on Information Access 2023
24 July 2023: Association of Information Access Commissioners of Australia and New Zealand (AIAC) meeting communique - 2 June 2023, Sydney, Australia
20 December 2022: Communiqué of the Association of Information Access Commissioners of Australia and New Zealand (AIAC) meeting 7 – 8 December 2022, Wellington, New Zealand
28 September 2022: Information Commissioners and Ombudsmen hail importance of enabling digital access
26 May 2022: Joint statement by Australian Information Access Commissioners and Privacy Authorities: Principles for nationally consistent approaches to accessing Stolen Generations records
30 September 2021: Information Access Commissioners and Commonwealth Ombudsman release survey results on community attitudes
24 September 2021: Information Access Commissioners and Ombudsmen in Australia make recommendations to support Open by Design Principles
28 September 2020: International Access to Information Day 2020
6 May 2020: COVID-19: The duty to document does not cease in a crisis, it becomes more essential
17 April 2020: Transparency and access to information in the context of a global pandemic
30 September 2019: Information Access Commissioners and Ombudsman release survey results on community attitudes
26 September 2019: Right to Know essential to democracy in a digital world
21 September 2018: Australia and New Zealand’s Information Access Commissioners join together in support of International Right to Know Day
27 November 2017: Australian Information Access Commissioners and Ombudsmen release national metrics on FOI access rights
21 September 2017: Australia and New Zealand Information Access Commissioners unite for citizens’ Right to Know
2 December 2016: 250th Anniversary of Global Freedom of Information - 2 December 2016

International Conference of Information Commissioners (ICIC)

The International Conference of Information Commissioners (ICIC) consists of Information Commissioners and Ombudsmen from around the world that meet regularly in order to foster a broader worldwide public awareness of freedom of information and benefit from the exchange of knowledge and experience among its participants.

The OIC WA become a member of the ICIC in September 2019. Other Australian members include the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, the Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner, the NSW Information and Privacy Commission and the Office of the Queensland Information Commissioner.

12^th International Conference of Information Commissioners 23–24 June 2021

The 12^th International Conference of Information Commissioners (the ICIC) took place virtually on 23-24 June, with members and observers joining together to consider key access to information and transparency challenges.

A resolution was put up by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner and co-sponsored by Information Commissioners from WA, NSW, Victoria, Queensland, New Zealand, Canada and the UK, committing to the importance of the pro-active publication of information relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the conference closed session the resolution was unanimously passed by all ICIC attending members, and that resolution states:

As the global pandemic continues, the importance of transparency and the right to access information remains. Recognising the role that access to information has in building trust in our global community during times of crisis and beyond, Information Commissioners around the world highlight the importance of the proactive disclosure of information held by governments or public institutions.

A link to the full statement is found here: https://www.informationcommissioners.org/icic-signs-joint-statement-on-proactive-publication-of-information-relating-to-the-covid-19-pandemic

Statements by the ICIC