Access to timely, accurate and complete official information is a prerequisite for citizens to be able to make decisions and fully exercise their rights guaranteed in a democratic society. This article examines the regulations on digitization in access to official documents sphere in Ukraine, the observations on the results of implementation of these rules in administrative practice of responsible authorities, as well as the suggestions on what challenges the government and citizens will face in this process. The Council of Europe Convention on Access to Official Documents, which entered into force in a number of European countries in 2020, brought the right of access to official documents to the level of international protection. However, access to official documents in the form of exchanging the papers, as mainly described in the Convention, is to a certain extend outdated, alternatively, a proactive approach in disclosing the information by digital sources is now a key to ensure citizens’ right to know about government action. At the same time, there are the opinions stated that the digitalization of access to official documents requires the development of an electronic document management system and increased requirements for the publication of information on the official websites of responsible authorities. Mentioned above results in the need to figure out if the legislation of Ukraine envisaged the necessary mechanisms to ensure access to information in a modern democratic society.

Bibliography

Edited books

1. ‘Proactive disclosure of information’ in Government at a Glance 2011 (OECD 2011) (in English).

2. Dmytro Kotliar (zah red), Naukovo-praktychnyi komentar do Zakonu Ukrainy “Pro dostup do publichnoi informatsii” (2012) (in Ukrainian).

Websites

1. Open Data Maturity Report 2021 (accessed: 20.09.2022) (in English).

2. The Open Data Barometer (accessed: 20.09.2022) (in English).

3. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) (accessed: 20.09.2022) (in English).

4. Zvit pro provedennia monitorynhu stanu vykonannia zakonodavstva pro dostup do publichnoi informatsii u rehionakh Ukrainy u 2021 rotsi (accessed: 20.09.2022) (in Ukrainian).

5. Inkliuzyvnist ta prava liudyny na perednomu krai. Dostupnist servisiv ta instrumentiv elektronnoho uriaduvannia dlia hromadian v Ukraini (Zvit za rezultatamy doslidzhennia) (accessed: 20.09.2022) (in Ukrainian).

6. Mizhnarodni praktyky shchodo dostupnosti mobilnykh zastosunkiv derzhavnykh orhaniv vlady (Zvit za rezultatamy doslidzhennia) (accessed: 20.09.2022) (in Ukrainian).