Ghana Chapter of the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank & IMF (PN), a bipartisan group of parliamentarians, has been officially relaunched after years of dormancy.
The Ghana Chapter of the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank & IMF (PN) was established in 2011 but has been dormant for some years now. However, in recent times, there has been elevated commitment on the part of some members of Ghana’s Parliament, resulting in its relaunch on Friday, October 7, 2022 at the World Bank Ghana Office in Accra.
Member of Parliament for Obuasi West Constituency and Chairman of the Finance Committee, Kwaku Agyeman Kwarteng, mentioned that the bipartisan group will advocate for improved transparency and accountability in development partnerships as it is the objective of the global network.
“The idea is to have a bipartisan group of parliamentarians who, as the objective of the global network, advocate for improved transparency and accountability in development partnership. So, in Ghana, we have members from both sides. A good number of us are from the finance committee, but there are others who are outside the finance committee,” he said.
Mr. Kwarteng noted that in the case of Ghana, the chapter is looking to make this a very influential group.
“We intend to have our numbers grow but we want to grow cautiously. We have in our fold members who are committed to the objectives of this global initiative, how the Ghana Chapter will achieve a clear impact in the way development partnership happens in Ghana, and also help the Global Initiative achieve the global objectives for which this network has been put together,” he said.
The Network provides a platform for parliamentarians from World Bank and IMF member-countries to advocate for increased accountability and transparency in international financial institutions and multilateral development financing.
World Bank Country Director for Ghana, Pierre Laporte, explained that the chapter will strengthen the position of parliamentarians among international financial institutions and other development stakeholders.
Mr. Laporte took advantage of the opportunity to promote value for money in public investments, which are crucial at the moment.
“To truly make a difference and together transform Ghana, we must really ensure that public investments for the provision of basic services to citizens are cost-effective. We have worked on audits, public finance procedures, and other things, and everything was successful.
“We have worked on audits, public finances processes and so on and all of that is fine. But the most important thing, I think, is that citizens all around Ghana including their Parliamentary representatives need to monitor what is being done.”
The World Bank has, since 1957, approved more than 216 projects and disbursed over US$10.2billion.
