Monrovia – The Non-State Actor (NSA) Secretariat at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning has donated 25 laptops to some Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) working in the country’s Public Financial Management.
The donation, which was made on Wednesday, July 3, 2019, is part of an ongoing process geared towards strengthening the capacity of CSOs as they serve as critical watchdogs in ensuring transparency and accountability in the management of public resources across Liberia.
Presenting the laptops on behalf of the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, the Deputy Minister for Administration Hon. Rebecca Y. McGill underscored the importance of training people and giving them the necessary tools to effectively carry out their responsibilities. “You can’t train people and not give those tools to work with especially when you are talking about building capacity,” she said.
She noted that the Government has recognized the roles and contributions of Civil Society Organizations in ensuring transparency and citizens’ participation in fiscal management.
She added that CSOs across the country have helped the government in terms of budget dissemination, monitoring of public services, facilitating community debates on budgetary issues, as well as, holding public officials and service providers accountable.
Hon. McGill expressed appreciation to the World Bank and the African Development Bank for their continuous support to the Government of Liberia, especially the Ministry of Finance through the Integrated Public Financial Management Reform Project II.
Also speaking, the Coordinator of the Reforms Coordination Unit Mr. Vee-Musa Fofana said the goal of the Unit is to coordinate broader PFM reforms across government and look forward to working with the NSA Secretariat to ensure that the civic space provided through the NSA is further strengthened.
For his part, Mr. Momo K. Lombeh, Deputy Project Manager said working with the NSA has been a success story over the years. He stated that the donation will help CSOs in the production of reports and the analysis of data collected from the field.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, the Executive Directors of two organizations expressed gratitude to MFDP and the NAS Secretariat and promised to use the laptops for the intended purpose.
The laptops were provided by the NSA Secretariat under the Integrated Public Financial Management Reform Project (IPFMRP II) with support from the African Development Bank and the World Bank.