Policy Think Tank, IMANI Center for Policy and Education has indicated that the government has achieved some reasonable progress towards the implementation of some promises it made to voters during the 2016 election campaign in its manifesto.
[ads1]Some of the achievements it revealed include the commencement of the free SHS policy, the planting for food an job program, increasing yields of cocoa by rehabilitating cocoa farms and replanting trees, relative macroeconomic stability and reducing the energy sector debt by GHC5 billion among others.
Speaking at the launch of The “Imanifesto: Assessment of the First Year of the NPP Government”, A Research Associate, Barbara Andoh, who did the presentation on behalf of IMANI Ghana noted that despite the achievements, some key elements must be carefully monitored to ensure the future success of the implementation of manifesto pledges.
Touching on eight thematic areas such as Economy, Job Creation, Agriculture, Governance, Education, Health, Energy, and Infrastructure for the assessment, Imani Ghana said the NPP led government made about 500 promises in these areas.The Manifesto analysis was carried out to assess and track the implementation of promises made by the NPP government prior to being elected into power.
IMANI Ghana said there is the need for transparency and accountability in some processes, citing an example of the allocation of USD 1million per Constituency under the infrastructure for poverty reduction programme and how the money will be spent. This it revealed is key to increasing transparency and accountability and would ensure that monitoring and evaluation can be conducted by the public, and that will lead to less corruption in the nation.
It recommended that Innovative strategies for the funding of education and health initiatives are needed to ensure sustainability of these government policies and programmes rather than solely depending on revenue from the oil and gas sector.“The Free SHS policy is a key policy and must be well implemented in light of the initial challenges, such as the needed infrastructure, Teaching and Learning Materials (TLMs) and teachers which will be required as a result of the increased enrolment. In addressing disparities in the health sector, the funding sources of the NHIS must be evaluated and reformed.” It said.
It noted that “while the progress made by the NPP government to achieve the promises in their manifesto is auspicious, given the length of time, we must also be wary of just ticking off promises from a checklist without solving actual problems. An example of this trend is with the rate of accumulation of the energy sector debt. Further, the interconnectivity of policies and programmes which will facilitate implementation of the promises should not be underestimated.”
IMANI Ghana urged government as a matter of urgency, to initiate steps to create a database on labour and employment issues. Since it will be useful for government to create an informative platform to communicate the number of direct and indirect jobs that have been or that are yet to be created.
Source: AwakeAfrica.com | Patricia Norvisi Gbologah
