Second National Policy Fair launched

Accra, April 12, GNA - The Second National Policy Fair to create platform for dialogue between policy makers, implementers and the public was launched in Accra on Tuesday. The theme for the theme: 93Empowering the People as we Build a Better Ghana" scheduled from April 26-30, would also afford opportunity to the citizenry to make direct assessment of the government's performance.

All Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as well as Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) would showcase their policies, projects, programmes and activities and receive feedback from the people for government's attention. Some Ministries would take advantage to outdoor new policies and programmes.

Mr John Tia Akologu, Minister of Information, launching the fair, said it was being held in line with government's commitment to expand the frontiers of transparency and accountability. He said it would be reciprocated later in the year in Volta, Ashanti and the Northern Regions in conformity with government's commitment to the decentralisation policy.

Mr Akologu said it would also serve as a one-stop access to all government departments and agencies and through the interactive nature of the fair made input or critique about any policy in the interest of building a Better Ghana.

"Being the Ministry tasked with the responsibility to implement this novel idea, I must say that last year's policy fair was a huge success and honestly the public interest and the quality of participation exceeded our expectation," he added. Mr Akologu said in organising this year's Policy Fair, the Ministry had taken into cognisance suggestions that were made to improve this year's edition, and it had already extended invitations to a cross-section of institutions and sectors including the private sector, political parties, religious organisations and government institutions.

"There is a Presidential directive to make the Policy Fair an annual event due to the interactions President John Evans Atta Mills had during the first Policy Fair," he said.

Other activities include special dialogue sessions to brainstorm and exchange ideas on pertinent issues of national consideration to be led by some illustrious sons and daughters of Ghana.

Some of the topics to be treated are 93The Coordinated Programme of Economic and Social Development Policies, 93Oil Production in Ghana-Opportunities Yet Untapped", 93In-depth Assessment of Government's Vision for the use of Ghana's Gas Potential", 93Assessi= ng Ghana's Path to Industrialisation-Government's Interventions so Far". The rest are 93Ghana's ICT Focus-Opportunities and Challenges", "Assessing Ghana's Efforts Towards Agricultural Revolution", and "Complexities On the International Front-should It warrant A different Posture or Change in Ghana's Foreign Relations".

In an answer to a question on government's commitment to continue projects and policies initiated by the previous government, Mr Akologu said monies released for such projects were from the taxpayer and government had no intention to waste such monies.