A two-day workshop to sharpen the skills of officials of metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies on the efficient and effective disbursement and management of public funds has been held in Tamale.
Among the topics discussed were local level institutional arrangement for the disbursement and management of public funds, legal framework, accounting rules, concepts, policies and procedures in the public sector and internal controls and role of stakeholders among others.
The participants included district chief executives, co-ordinating directors, finance and budget officers, chairpersons of finance and administration subcommittees and local government inspectors from the 20 districts in the Northern Region.
The workshop was organised by the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS) in Tamale.
The Head of the Education and Training of the ILGS, Mr Simon Bokor, mentioned waste and corruption, increasing public expenditure and the inability of public institutions to meet public needs as some of the areas that had contributed to inefficiency and lack of responsiveness in the public sector.
He, however, added “Of late, accountability, ethics and integrity have taken centre stage in public-private engagement with the understanding that the more responsive district assemblies become, the more local people are enabled to realise their rights and gain access to resources”.
Mr Bokor explained accountability to mean the rights and responsibilities that existed between people and the institutions that affect their lives such as governments, private enterprises and civil society.
He further suggested that for accountability to be effective, there should be free flow of information on decisions and actions taken, and the involvement of citizens in the business of local governance.
“It is the view of many that accountability must not only be an after-event activity but should be applied before, during and after the exercise of public authority”, Mr Bokor stated.
The officer in charge of accounting at the ILGS, Mr Eric Oduro Osei, said financial reforms were an integral part of the nation’s decentralisation policy and the new system of local government.
He explained that the reforms aimed at mobilising local resources and ensuring a prudent and judicious use of financial resources at the local level to ensure total national development.
According to Mr Osei, the misapplication of funds was detrimental to the overall national effort of reducing poverty through wealth creation.
He, therefore, indicated that by virtue of their position as facilitators of local development, district officials must be abreast of the demands of their office and work for the citizens to obtain value for money.
“It is, therefore, pertinent that they are continuously exposed to the laws, procedures, practices and internal controls in managing public funds in order that public funds will be well managed for improved standards of living in the localities”, Mr Osei stated.
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