Akufo-Addo's proposals on NDPC makes sense – Dr Lloyd Amoah

Policy Analyst at Ashesi University, Dr. Lloyd Amoah says the National Development Planning Commission must be resourced with the requisite “brain power” if it is to achieve the objective for which the Constitution established it.

He says the Commission in its current state was incapable of engineering any significant policy propositions that will fast-track the country's development.

Dr. Amoah’s submissions follow a suggestion by Policy Think Tank, IMANI Ghana, that the NDPC be stripped of its planning responsibilities and reduced to an advisory body.

The Commission’s role in national development planning came under came under intense scrutiny in Tuesday’s presidential debate where the various candidates articulated their positions on how to make the commission more effective.

Founding President of IMANI, Franklyn Cudjoe told Joy News that the emphasis on the NDPC as a vehicle for a binding national development plan was unfortunate.

Speaking on the Super Morning Show on Joy FM Thursday, Dr. Lloyd Amoah supported New Patriotic Party flagbearer’s idea of making his Vice president chair the Commission, if the party is elected to govern in December.

“The NDPC needs to be far more resourced and provided with greater presidential clout; and so for me, Nana Addo’s position that he will put the Vice president as the key government personality on that Commission to ensure that it has presidential bite, is timely and important.

“…I think that other institutions such as the NDPC which are mandated by our supreme law to perform that role, ought to be backed up with as I said, resources, with brain power; young people from the universities, policy analysts, intellectuals who have proved their worth in their fields ought to be sent in there so that the NDPC provides us with the intellectual fire power on a consistent level,” Dr. Amoah stated.

Similarly, Development Policy Advisor at the Office of the President, Dr. Sulley Gariba has described IMANI’s position as “thoughtfully analysed “and “dead on”.

Dr. Gariba noted that even though the Commission had been offering some advice but they lack the authority to demand that their advice is followed.

Dr. Gariba said the nation still needs the Commission to focus on developing the development planning framework to ensure the long term planning of the country, while the Finance Ministry puts resources to it.