The African Ombudsman and Mediators Association (AOMA) published the 9^th edition of the AOMAS Newsletter "African Ombudsman Today". It introduces Ombudsmen and their institutions in Africa and reports on recent events. Additionally, it also contains an update on the progress made on the Africa Ombudsman Study which is a collaboration between the IOI and AORC.

City of Toronto Ombudsman Susan Opler released the institution's 2017 Annual Report. She says that in 2017, her office handled nearly 1650 complaints about City services, up 7% from the year before. Poor communication continues to be a factor in many complaints her office receives. Ombudsman Toronto published nine reports in 2017, making 65 recommendations that improved fairness in how the City of Toronto serves people. 

Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman publishes its first Quarterly Bulletin, which aims to provide readers with a short, easy-to-read summary of news from the Office, drawing attention to the most recent investigation reports, providing updates on new initiatives, and highlighting other aspects of the Ombudsman’s work.

Stephen Thomson, Associate Professor at the City University of Hong Kong wrote an article on “The Public Sector Ombudsman in Greater China: Four ‘Chinese’ Models of Administrative Supervision”, which was published in the Journal of International Law of Penn Law, the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Azerbaijan submitted her 2017 Annual Report to the state authorities, namely the country President, Parliament, Cabinet of Ministers, and Constitutional as well as Supreme Court and to the Prosecutor General in conformity with Article 14 of the Constitutional Law on Ombudsman.

Wodonga Council collected at least $18 million in extra revenue from its waste management levy over the past decade, using the surplus to fund other council services, the Ombudsman has found. Tabling her Investigation into Wodonga City Council’s overcharging of a waste management levy in the Victorian Parliament today, Ombudsman Deborah Glass said about 70 per cent of the revenue raised through the charge had been spent on waste-related services. Nearly a third had been spent on other council services, such as the maintenance of parks, gardens and other council activities.

IOI President and Irish Ombudsman Peter Tyndall welcomed the Minister for Justice and Equality’s announcement that it will move forward on implementing the recommendations following the investigation into how the Department of Justice and Equality administered the Magdalen Restorative Justice scheme. The report of his investigation, Opportunity Lost, was critical of how the Department administered the scheme, including how some women who worked in the Magdalen laundries have been wrongly refused access to the scheme.

 

IOI President and Irish Information Commissioner Peter Tyndall hosted a conference to mark 20 years of the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) in Ireland on Friday 13 April in Dublin.  The half-day conference reflected on the impact of FOI in Ireland and its contribution to the reform of the public service.