Citizens Budget Watch has trained 37 Budget Accountability and Tracking Teams (BATTs) in Port Loko District as a way of empowering citizens with budget information to enhance accountability of public officials for effective public service delivery.
The training participants were drawn from community based organizations, the media, students, civil society organizations and the general public.
In her opening statement, the BATTs Coordinator for Port Loko District Miss Mafudia Kamara, thanked the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) for supporting Citizens Budget Watch to set up and train BATTs in their district as she referred to the project a unique and laudable initiative that has never happened in their district.
She called on members to embrace the project as it has the potential to turn around things in her district in enhancing public service delivery in the health and education sectors.
She continued that for so long they have been wishing for such a project that will empower them to track and monitor central government as well as local council budget expenditure in Port Loko District. She also said, “service delivery in the area of health and education sector is deplorable as maternal mortality rate is very high in the district and has accounted for more than 50 deaths in the month of June. “It is worrisome for our district,” she said.
The Head of programs Citizens’ Budget Watch (SL) Lamin Vanna, welcomed members to the organization’s training program.
He told participants that Citizens’ Budget Watch is a Civil Society Organization that works towards promoting effective and efficient public service delivery through transparency and accountability by ensuring that every precious tax Leone delivers maximum value for the citizens.
He said that the organization undertakes advocacy, lobbying, track and monitor government budget expenditure and also engages stakeholders on economic governance issues.
He furthered that the project is designed by the organization and supported by OSIWA and the organization will set up and train BATTs as well as train community stakeholders in the district on how to track and monitor central government and local councils’ on budget expenditure in the health and education sector in the district.
He encouraged the BATTs to seize this opportunity and monitor how money and properties are used in the health and education sectors in their district. He thanked OSIWA for supporting them on such a project.
The training was facilitated by two Senior Budget Officers from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, Mr. Abdul Rahman Conteh and Osman Alpha Kamara. Participants were taught on the meaning of government budget, citizens’ budget, how to track and monitor government budget, citizens’ role in monitoring government budget and many more.
Tension mounted amongst participants when they were given central government transfers to district councils for first half of 2016 as they claimed their district has been denied of any fund received from government.
They went on to say there is a total disconnect between the people and the council and that the council does things unilaterally without informing or involving the people.
The council used to hold public hearing during their budget preparation but for a long time, they had not been holding public hearing on their budget as that had been the reason for the declining state of health and education services in their district, the trainers said.
They requested the organization’s support in ensuring that their district council increase public participation in their budget preparation by display of funds transferred from central government and donor agencies to the council to support the health and education sectors in their district.
Monday July 04, 2016
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