MEDIA PRACTITIONERS, CSOS, CBOS BENEFIT USAID-LEAD ACTIVITY TRAINING ON BUDGET TRANSPARENCY AND PUBLIC FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
By: Matalay S. Kollie
GBARNGA, BONG COUNTY: A three-day capacity building training aimed at advocating and improving Budget Transparency, Public Financial Management including Full Budget Cycle at local and national levels has commenced in Gbarnga, Bong County.
The training was being sponsored by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
Integrity Watch-Liberia in partnership with the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning and Local Empowerment For Accountability And Decentralization (LEAD) Activity is enhancing Civil Society and community based organization’s capacities to advocate for improved budget transparency and public Financial Management at all levels
Giving a backdrop of the project, USAID-LEAD Technical Advisor Mohammed Swaray informed participants that the project is valued at Seventeen Million United States Dollars (USD$17M) and is capturing Grand Bassa, Bong, and Nimba Counties over the next five years.
Swaray added that the project is focused on three strategic objectives, which include Domestic Resource Mobilization improved, Budget Transparency and Local Development as well as improved Service delivery.
The USAID-LEAD Technical Advisor also added that objective one of the project works in a cross-sections of government institutions, including the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), and other key sectors of Government,
while objective two targets all integrity institutions of Government which include the Liberia Anti Corruption Commission (LACC), General Auditing Agency (GAC), Internal Audit Agency (IAA), and Public Account Committee (PAC) while object three involves the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), and Local Authorities including Superintendents and local county officials.
Also making remarks at the event, Integrity Watch-Liberia Executive Director Harlod M. Aidoo emphasized the need for institutionalizing public participation in discussions on the national budget. Aidoo added that the project seeks to address local empowerment accountability and transparency in governance noting that it can only be done through strategic organizations like the Civil Society Organizations and the Media.
Mr. Aidoo believes if capacity-building training is conducted for the selected participants, issues surrounding Public Financial Management and the Full Budget Cycle will be well understood for decision-making and criticisms of the misappropriation of public funding.
