Govt committed to transparency, accountability

The Senior Presidential Advisor, Yaw Osafo-Maafo, has reaffirmed the government's commitment to transparency and accountability in governance.

Mr Osafo-Maafo, who is also the Chairman of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) National Steering Committee, was speaking at the OGP-Construction Sector Transparency (CoST) Initiative Stakeholder meeting in Accra on revitalising infrastructure investments in Ghana.

The event brought together local and international stakeholders to promote transparency and accountability in infrastructure planning and delivery. The meeting, hosted by Open Government Partnership in collaboration with the CoST, aimed to underscore the benefits of transparency and accountability in infrastructure planning and delivery.

It served as a platform for showcasing the exemplary subnational experience of CoST in Sekondi-Takoradi and facilitating peer learning and collaboration within Ghana's network of transparency champions aimed at upscaling the initiative at the national level.

Participants discussed capacity building, effective governance in local infrastructure projects and stakeholder engagement.

Beneficial Ownership Disclosure regime

Mr Osafo-Maafo shared Ghana's journey towards fostering open government principles, and cited achievements since the country's involvement with the OGP in 2011.

Ghana's progress in fostering open government principles, he said, included the establishment of a Beneficial Ownership Disclosure regime and the passage of the Right to Information Act.

He also mentioned the government's fifth edition of a four-year OGP Action Plan, which focuses on transparency, accountability, participation, technology and innovation. He underscored the need for tangible evidence of the transformative power of transparency and accountability through assurance processes and adoption of CoST tools and standards.

Sekondi-Takoradi success story

The Chairperson of CoST Sekondi-Takoradi Multi-Stakeholder Working Group, Eugene Fredua Ofori Atta, in a speech read on his behalf by the CoST Sekondi-Takoradi Manager, Isaac Aidoo, said the organisation had also developed an Online Data Disclosure Platform and Infrastructure Analytical Dashboard to enhance access to project data and foster transparency.

CoST Sekondi-Takoradi, he said, had expanded its reach to seven additional Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the Western Region, engaging over 1,000 stakeholders in capacity-building and awareness-raising events.

He emphasised the importance of multi-stakeholder collaboration and called for continued efforts to drive positive change in the infrastructure sector. Later Mr Aidoo showcased CoST Sekondi-Takoradi's impact stories and successful multi-stakeholder collaborations as a model for other MMDAs in Ghana to adopt.

Commending Ghana

The COST Board Chair, Christiaan J. Poortman, said the group aimed to bring greater disclosure to infrastructure project information, enabling multi-stakeholder groups to assess and decide on projects that needed further assessment.

Mr Poortman commended the progress made by the Sekondi-Takoradi project, which had already achieved significant milestones in bringing transparency and disclosure to infrastructure projects in the Western Region.

The COST Board, he said, was exploring opportunities to expand the programme beyond the Western Region to bring transparency and disclosure to the nation at large. Mr Poortman emphasised the importance of collaboration with partners, domestically and internationally, including anti-corruption agencies and initiatives like the Open Government Partnership (OGP).

The Development Director of the British High Commission, Richard Sandall, said it was important to fight corruption and promote high standards in governance after praising Ghana's efforts to promote integrity and transparency, particularly in the public sector.

Ghana, he stated, had a real fight against corruption and urged continued efforts to promote integrity and transparency. He commended the COST board for choosing Ghana as a host country, and expressed hope that the visit would have a lasting impact beyond the meeting.