A/HRC/4/71 page 12 good law on paper and good implementation. Since the adoption of access to information laws around the world is quite recent, greater attention should be paid to the provision of resources, political will and institutions to ensure their implementation. The same panellist injected a note of optimism by saying that as more support is obtained from Governments, better implementation may follow. She added that some of the best advocates for access to information are found in health and education ministries which have discovered that, as they make more information available, citizens become more engaged, which in turn helps them secure more resources (larger budgets), in the process of building an important partnership around access to information. 25. The session moderator highlighted the emphasis participants placed on calls for international support, action and cooperation if national strategies are to succeed. He noted the specific call for greater international work to set a standard regarding what access to information implies. A third recommendation was to give attention to the usefulness of borrowing the “bottoms-up activism” from the human rights experience for anti-corruption work. Similarly, the need to engage civil society in the drive for change and to raise awareness regarding Governments’ accountability and to do it with imagination was noted. Mr. Archer pointed out the value of sanctions for certain purposes. Finally, the issue of impunity and transitional justice was raised and the example was given of action taken after corruption had occurred on a large scale, in order to compensate for the damage it had caused. IV. ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY, PRIVATE SECTOR AND THE MEDIA 26. The session moderator, Victoria Jennett, Research Coordinator, Transparency International, introduced the session on the role of civil society, the private sector and the media in fighting corruption. She explained that panellists would provide examples of how these three sectors draw on human rights principles in their anti-corruption efforts, describe how those efforts can serve to protect human rights and how Governments can learn from and support their anti-corruption initiatives. 27. Colm Allan, Director of the Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) spoke about how PSAM has used social accountability to curb corruption in South Africa, particularly in the Eastern Cape Province. PSAM promotes social accountability, the right of citizens to obtain justifications and explanations for the use of public resources from those entrusted with their management, in order to tackle corruption and achieve the realization of social and economic rights. Mr. Allan emphasized the importance of a right to social accountability even in countries like South Africa that enjoy excellent constitutional provisions and a legislative framework, because of problems that occur in implementation. He described the methodology PSAM developed for monitoring five social accountability systems: (a) planning and resource allocation, (b) expenditure, (c) performance, (d) integrity, and (e) oversight. By monitoring the performance of four Government departments between 2000 and 2006, PSAM determined that corruption and ineffective use of resources start at the planning and resource allocation stage when an accurate analysis of citizens’ needs is missing. Without such an analysis, proper planning cannot be done and over- and under-spending become common. PSAM’s civic empowerment and advocacy in the Eastern Cape has, inter alia, resulted in greater awareness of the importance of accurate financial reporting by government departments, improved civil