A/HRC/40/29 Declaration of Human Rights (art. 19) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (art. 19) includes the freedom to seek, receive and impart information. 52. The right to access information is not only a right in itself, but an essential means for the realization of other rights. For example, in the context of human rights and the environment, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in its general comment No. 15 (2002) on the right to water, stated that individuals should be given full and equal access to information concerning water and the environment (para. 48). In Europe, rights to participation and access to information are also an integral part of the Protocol on Water and Health to the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (arts. 5 and 6) and of the ECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters. In addition, in its general comment No. 14 (2000) on the right to the highest attainable standard of health, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights highlighted information accessibility as a key dimension of accessibility of the right to health, including the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas concerning health issues (paras. 11 and 12). 53. Availability of information and transparency in the formulation and implementation of public policies allows for a better protection of people’s rights to basic services. Without information about the status of their rights to health, housing or work, people are not able to monitor the extent to which their rights are being respected, and they are therefore unable to claim their rights. In various parts of the world, transparency in budget processes has enabled an informed public debate about expenditures and has ultimately contributed to more funds going to education, health, welfare, employment and housing. 24 Therefore, facilitating the public’s access to information, including through legislation, is essential for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 16. 25 F. Empowerment through the justiciability of economic, social and cultural rights 54. One of the unique features of economic, social and cultural rights is their potential to empower people through legal avenues. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights affirmed that all Covenant rights possess at least some significant justiciable dimensions26 and that “Covenant norms must be recognized in appropriate ways within the 24 25 26 See OHCHR, Realizing Human Rights through Government Budgets, 2017. Examples of legislation on access to information passed since 2000 include: Argentina (Access to Public Information Act, 2016); Armenia (Law on Freedom of Information, 2003); Azerbaijan (Law on Access to Information, 2005); Bangladesh (Right to Information Ordinance, No. 50 of 2008); Chile (Law on Access to Public Information, 2009); China (Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information, 2007); Cyprus (Law on the Right of Access to Information of the Public Sector, Law number 184(I)/2017); Dominican Republic (Law on Access to Public Information, No. 200-04 of 2004); Ecuador (Transparency and Access to Information Law, 2004); El Salvador (Law on Access to Public Information, 2011); Germany (Freedom of Information Law, 2005 and 2013); India (Right to Information Act, 2005); Iran (Islamic Republic of) (Law on Dissemination of and Free Access to Information, 2008); Jamaica (Access to Information Act, 2002); Liberia (Freedom of Information Act, 2010); Maldives (Right to Information Act, 2014); Pakistan (Freedom of Information Ordinance, 2002); Rwanda (Law Relating to Access to Information, Law 04/2013); Slovenia (Access to Public Information Act, 2003); South Africa (Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000); Sri Lanka (Right to Information Act No. 12, 2016); Tanzania (United Republic of) (Access to Information Act, 2016); Turkey (Law on the Right to Information, 2003); Uganda (Access to Information Act, 2011); and Zimbabwe (Access to Information and Privacy Act, 2002). Many of these countries have also made key budget documents available – thereby ensuring that access to information can lead to effective citizen participation. The Open Budget Index published by the International Budget Partnership in its Open Budget Survey 2017 lists the following countries among those providing substantial budget information, with scores higher than 61 out of 100: Dominican Republic, Germany, Slovenia and South Africa. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, general comment No. 9 (1998) on the domestic application of the Covenant, para. 10. 13