Ghana's development partners last Monday announced a 1.7 billion dollar support for 2008 to accelerate implementation of programmes under the country's Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy II.

The declaration came at the end of the 15th Ghana Consultative Group Meeting of government officials, development experts, partners and civil society organisations in Accra.  Ghana has in recent years witnessed a consistent increase in donor funding, reaching a level of 1.2 billion dollars last year.
     

Mr Filiberto Ceriani Sebregondi, Head of EU Delegation in Ghana, said the increased support was the joint effort of donors to align their contributions to the development aspirations of Ghana.
     

"We have constantly engaged in the last few years in a progressive alignment of aid to the country's priority of human resource development, private sector competitiveness and good governance," he told a press conference shortly after the meeting.  He was confident that the donors would deliver on their commitments in view of the performance in the last two years.
     

Development partners had delivered about 95 per cent of their commitments in the last few years.
     

Mr Ishac Diwan, World Bank Country Director, said attention was paid at the meeting to the oil and food price shocks and how it could impact on the country's growth prospects. He said the country had shown enough economic stability, which had enabled it to withstand the shocks.
     

Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, said pressures from domestic power supply shock, higher crude oil and food prices posed a serious development challenge to the economy.  He said the meeting stressed the need for a move towards better aid effectiveness through alignment between donor partners' activity and that of government.
     

Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, Minister for State at the Finance Ministry, said the country's aid policy was a joint approach to accelerated development, which was a clear departure from the traditional aid paradigm.
     

Mr Joseph Henry Mensah, Chairman of Development Planning Commission, stressed the need to generate enough domestic resources and consider official development assistance as a supplement.   
     

The meeting discussed the results, achievements and challenges of Ghana's development and poverty reduction efforts on the theme: Ghana's Aid Policy-A Joint Approach to Accelerated Development."
     

Highlights of the meeting included a long-term national development plan being prepared by the National Development Planning Commission and the Annual Progress Report on Ghana's Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy II. 
     

There was also discussion initiated by the development partners on division of labour to help address donor fragmentation, accountability and transparency and also minimise transaction costs and achieve greater comparative advantage.

Source: GNA

Posted: 02/07/08

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