Local News

 NDPC launches evaluation of MTNDPF

 The National Development Planning Commis­sion (NDPC) on Friday launched the evaluation process for the Medium-Term National Development Policy Framework (MTNDPF).

Dubbed: ‘Agenda for Jobs II (2022-2025),’ it would focus on key areas that are critical to the country such as Social Protection, Child Protection, Education, Health, Nutrition, Job Creation, and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH).

It is expected to last for six months.

The Director-General (DG)of the NDPC, Dr Eric Akobeng, said the Commission would adopt a “transparent and ethical approach” to this evaluation, leveraging its Cross-Sectoral Planning Group established under section 15 of the National Development Planning Commission Act, 1994 (Act 479).

This group, he stated, would comprised representatives of Ministries, Departments and Agen­cies (MDAs), private sector, and such individuals selected for their knowledge and experience as the commission may determine.

Speaking at the launch in Accra, Dr Akobeng underscored that the commission would also establish an Evaluation Reference Group made up of academia, civil society organisation, private sector, devel­opment partners and ministries, departments and agencies.

He emphasised the significance of evaluating Ghana’s develop­mental progress.

He stressed that self-evaluation was crucial for national growth, adding that “Without proper self-evaluation, failure is inevita­ble.”

“It is therefore essential to as­sess the extent of implementation, identify the impacts, challenges and lessons learned, especially given that the country is in the process of developing a new MTNDPF to guide development within the medium-term (2026-2029),” Dr Akobeng noted.

Furthermore, the DG said the Commission would establish a Steering and Technical Commit­tees to oversea the conduct of the evaluation.

He stated that the evaluation would help provide insights into the progress, challenges, and im­pacts of the framework.

“The Commission is of the firm belief that the evaluation would unearth useful information that would set the tone for the devel­opment of a new Medium-Term National Development Policy Framework (MTNDPF) that is reflective of the aspirations of the country,” he highlighted.

Dr Akobeng reaffirmed the NDPC’s commitment to using the insights from this assessment to develop a more responsive and inclusive policy framework for national development.

A Social Policy Specialist, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Mr Charles Dzradosi, said UNICEF had been happy to support the country towards the implementation of the Policy Framework, specifically to ensure that the rights of children were protected, as enshrined in the Con­vention on the Rights of the Child.

He noted that supporting the policy means supporting the strengthening of the evaluation functions of NDPC, MDAs and MMDAs to meet and even exceed the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) norms and stan­dards in order to ensure that all UNICEF commitments were met throughout the process.

“It is our hope and expecta­tion that the outcomes of this evaluation process will not just catalog policies and activities, but also critically assess whether they are equitable and inclusive,” he indicated.

 BY CECILIA YADA LAGBA

Source link

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button