Evaluation of transparency in local decision-making through the information availability on Czech municipal websites

Abstract

Transparency is considered to be the fundamental element of well-functioning and effective public administration on the local level of government. Open and straightforward access to information considerably supports transparency with better public control as well as supporting compliance with the public interest. One suitable tool that allows better public access to information, greater transparency and citizen participation in decision making is the use of the Internet in the public sector and the development of e-government. This paper focuses on e-government on the local level, especially the disclosure of information on municipal websites. The research was conducted on selected Czech municipal websites. The main goal was to evaluate the availability of information about decision making in the Czech municipalities and the availability of participation tools for citizens. For this purpose, selected information published on the municipal websites in the Moravian-Silesian Region was analysed. The results of the research pointed out the shortcomings in the publishing of information on municipal websites. The low level of citizen participation on the local level of government was also stressed.