The newly created Planning portfolio by the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is to ensure that the agenda of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government stays within the broad framework of the 40-year development plan introduced by the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC).
The issue with the national development plan is that every elected government has to be able to factor its priorities and its development agenda within the overall context of the broad national plan.
President Akufo-Addo on Thursday explained that per the discussions he has already had with members of the NDPC, it was indicative for them, and for me [Akufo-Addo] that it will be useful to have a point of reference for the administration for the process of reconciling the agenda of the NPP and the mandate it have within its manifesto and within the broad framework of the development plan.
In the President’s words: “All of us within the political space are now agreeing that we have to take the issue of planning and development of our economy seriously, and that is why a lot of support has been given to the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), which has come out with a 40-year programme for national development, set out in broad terms and targets.”
President Akufo-Addo said for him to achieve that, he was nominating Professor George Gyan Baffour, the Member of Parliament for Wenchi in the Brong Ahafo region for Parliamentary consideration as Minister of Planning.
The President thinks that Prof Baffour was ideal and suited for the position because, “he is a respected economist who was a deputy minister of Finance in President Kufuor’s time.”
“I believe that he is ideally suited for this task of translating the NPP manifesto and the NPP priorities within the broad frame work of national development plan.”
The President explained that the portfolio would operate from the Office of the President with its budgetary allocations coming under the Office of the President.
“It is an important task because if we all agreed on the broad principles of national development, we also have to factor it into the mandate of a given government.”
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