Next Dev. Plan to be ready by December

Ghana's next development plan under President Kufuor's administration targeting per capita income of 1000 dollars within five years will be placed before parliament in December.

The National Development Planning Committee (NDPC) through various regional consultative seminars is preparing the vision statement of the plan, which would span from 2003 to 2008.

Mr Ben Salifu, Minister of State, NDPC told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Thursday during a day's seminar on the plan under the theme; "From Poverty Reduction Wealth Creation - Building a Consensus on National Vision and Programme of Action".

The seminar, organised by the Greater Accra Regional Co-ordinating Council in collaboration with the Ministry of Economic Planning and Regional Cooperation and the NDPC was attended by members of Parliament, members of the private sector, and other stakeholders.

Mr Salifu noted that the aim of the seminar was to ensure that the plan was "devoid of all forms of political connotations to present a dispassionate document that would be based on contributions and inputs from a broad spectrum of the populace."

He said going by the 1992 constitution, President Kufuor has up to December this year to put before parliament a coordinated programme of economic and social development policies at all levels in all regions within the two years of assuming office.

Sheik I.C Quaye, Greater Accra Regional Minister said to avoid the mistakes of the past developmental programmes, it was necessary for Ghanaians to have a proper understanding of development and how it should be carried out.

He said a new development goal must be sought to liberate powerless people from all forms of dependency so that they would be able to move from the life situation they considered less human to alternative patterns they perceived to be more human.

"The new focus of development is, therefore, on the people with emphasis on the state of the human well-being rather than solely on the state of national economy.

"We are by this new focus, primarily concerned with the development of man before all other consideration", he added.