3 months ago
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The Country Director of SEND Ghana, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Ms Harriet Nuamah Agyemang, has urged political parties to include in their manifestos effective policies that will readily address challenges impeding the country’s social and economic growth.
She also said that some existing social policies have failed to address the needs of the people and should be reconsidered.
Ms Agyemang made the call in an interview with the Ghanaian Times on the sidelines of a National Level Dialogue on the Citizens Social Sector Manifesto for Election 2024, held in Accra.
The dialogue, which was organised by SEND Ghana in partnership with Multimedia Group Limited, was to provide the platform for representatives of the two leading political parties, New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC), to share plans on how to address social issues as contained in their party manifestos.
According to Ms Agyemang, a social policy like the National Health Insurance was a good move to improve the health of the citizens, however, there were inadequacies, which needed to be addressed to make it more useful.
She also called for reforms and effective implementation of other social interventions such as the School Feeding Programme, District Assembly Common Fund for the disabled, the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty Programme and the Affirmative Action Act, 2024.
Ms Agyemang said the NGO engaged citizens to gather their inputs for the development of the Citizens Social Sector Manifesto for Election 2024, titled ‘Towards a More Equitable Society: The Citizens Social Sector Manifesto 2024.’
She said “as Ghana prepares for the 2024 General Election, SEND Ghana and its partners have actively engaged with citizens across the southern and northern zones to gather their inputs to develop a Social Sector Manifesto,” which should be adopted by the political parties.
“This manifesto focuses no critical issues hindering equitable development and citizens’ access to essential services, including healthcare, education, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), gender and social protection, child protection and welfare, and adolescent health rights,” she said.
The Country Director noted that, political party manifestos have become major documents for national development, and urged political parties to take into consideration the needs of the citizens when developing such documents.
“So we feel that once we get citizens’ concerns registered in the manifestos of the parties, the likelihood of implementing those concerns will be quite high,” Ms Agyemang asserted.
She said that, the two leading parties, had pledged to their commitment to the Citizens Social Sector Manifesto for Election 2024 “because they have assured us, we have now a better grounding to hold them accountable to their words, and also keep reminding them when they assume office.”
BY CECILIA LAGBA YADA
