Friends of the Nation (FoN) – a Socio-Environmental advocacy Non-governmental Organization (NGO) is partnering with the Ketu South Municipal Assembly in the use of a multi-stakeholder approach to enhancing Open Governance in action plan delivery.
The Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a voluntary global initiative that aims to build trust and foster collaborations between governments and their citizens to improve development outcomes.
Members of the Multi-Stakeholder forum from the Ketu South Assembly were taken through the uniqueness of the Open Government Partnership and how it brings together governments and civil society organizations to initiate and implement change on the national and local levels.
Project Officer for Friends of the Nation, Kenneth Kwame Kankam said the last few years after the Covid-19 have demonstrated that living in crises has become the new norm and as a result, “we have to re-evaluate our day-to-day practices and continuous dialogue between governments, civil society, and target beneficiaries should be a core principle of these practices.”
“When governments and civil society organizations, like youths groups, women organizations people with disabilities (PWD) etc work together to address challenges, they create solutions that are more ambitious, and results for citizens are noticeably stronger. Together we will help grow the strength, capacities, and sustainability of OGP and civil society at the district and national levels,” Kankam noted.
He said, participation of both civil society and government is essential to the success of the Open Government Partnership and their collaboration is vital at the district and Municipal level and within each participating region
This he said is the reason why OGP participation is a commited way in developing their local or National Action Plans through a multi-stakeholder process, with the active engagement of citizens and civil society.
Friends Of the Nation, according to Kankam, intends to help the Ketu South Municipal Assembly and civil society actors’ participate in national OGP processes to meet the Partnership’s guidelines. It aims alsonto support the Assembly in moving beyond the minimal requirements and develop fuller and more ambitious approaches to permanent government–civil society dialogue.
The co-ordinating director for Ketu South Assembly, Gilbert Enyonam Avemega, said Municipal authorities will use the approach to enable the public to observe the workings of the assembly from time to time, making all the sectors of society to take part in decision making.
In all, enhancing public participation can result in more informed and better local government policies, practices and decisions, and in more responsive, innovative and effective local
governance and services.
By Hebrews Pouyeli Kumako || Ghananewsonline.com.gh.