By Yussif Ibrahim
Kumasi, July 30, GNA – The Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) in partnership with the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) has held an engagement with stakeholders to build their capacity in paying attention to procurement issues and support monitoring efforts nationwide.
The engagement sought to deepen the knowledge of public sector officials, civil society organisations and media practitioners on the use of the Ghana Electronic Procurement System (GHANEPS).
The exercise formed part of GACC’s project, “Building Evidence for Increased Accountability in Ghana through a Multi-Stakeholder Accountability Initiative,” funded by the Hewlett Foundation.
The two-day engagement held in Kumasi formed part of a zonal capacity-building exercise covering the northern, middle, southern and coastal zones of the country.
It brought together representatives from the Local Accountability Networks (LANets), procurement officers from Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) and Regional Coordinating Councils (RCCs) as well as the media.
Mr. Solomon Yankah, the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer of GACC, said the exercise was aimed at deepening the understanding of procurement officers already working in the various regions and MMDAs on GHANEPS, while equipping CSOs and the media to pay closer attention to procurement issues and support monitoring efforts nationwide.
He said the initiative had become necessary because a significant proportion of corruption in the country occurred within the procurement chain, a sector that accounted for between 50 and 75 per cent of annual government expenditure.
He noted that it was therefore critical to enhance the skills and capabilities of stakeholders to ensure that the objectives for which GHANEPS including transparency, fairness, competitiveness and access to information were established.
On the way forward, he said the GACC expected participants to train colleagues who could not benefit from the training, while the CSOs and media were expected to follow up on the annual procurement plans of their respective MMDAs to ensure compliance.
He said the training was not an end in itself, adding that the GACC would follow up with participants, noting that citizen and media scrutiny often prompted assemblies to take appropriate action on procurement matters.
He said the Coalition had developed a series of follow-up actions to sustain the impact of the training beyond the workshop.
GNA
Edited by Benjamin Mensah
Reporter: Yussif Ibrahim
Reporter’s email address: [email protected]