Akufo-Addo To Anti-corruption stakeholders: Critically Evaluate NACAP 1, Propose New Measures

President Akufo-Addo has charged all relevant institutions involved in the country’s fight against corruption to critically evaluate Ghana’s maiden “National Anti-Corruption Action Plan” (NACAP 1) which has been in force for nearly ten years and to propose new anti-corruption measures that will constitute the basis for NACAP 2 which will span thee period 2025 to 2034.

Addressing stakeholders at the Launch of the Evaluation of Ghana’s Maiden National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP), today, Thursday, 21 December 2023, at the banquet house of the Jubilee House, President Akufo-Addo said after almost 10 years of implementing NACAP, there is the need to understand how the action plan has contributed to reducing corruption in Ghana and to make necessary adjustments to our policies and institutional arrangements based on the evaluation results.

“The evaluation is important to assess the contribution of NACAP to the fight against corruption in all spheres and to form the basis for developing our next NACAP, which is NACAP 2 (2025 to 2034). The above underscores the importance of the evaluation exercise and I call on all stakeholders to support its success.

“Mindful of the enormity of the task in evaluating anti-corruption interventions, strategies, and action plans, an evaluation team of diverse expertise including those in political science, economics, communication, and gender, has been constituted to evaluate the maiden NACAP.

“The evaluation comprises national evaluators led by the Ghana Statistical Service and shall be supported by international evaluators from the UNODC, to benchmark the evaluation exercise with international best practices and guarantee credibility,” President Akufo-Addo said.

*Stakeholder participation*

Touching on how the evaluation will be carried out, President Akufo-Addo noted that “a high-quality evaluation of NACAP will be conducted utilizing a wide range of information sources and several appropriate methods and tools”.

He indicated that since the fight against corruption is a shared responsibility, all stakeholders must “see the evaluation of the maiden NACAP and the development of NACAP 2 as their collective responsibility and citizens and non-citizens alike must also see the exercise as their responsibility as well.

“I urge all stakeholders to give the exercise the priority it deserves, provide open and honest responses and inputs and offer their support and cooperation to ensure a successful evaluation. Let us embrace it as a beneficial learning tool rather than a threatening scrutiny.

“I call on members of the Executive, Parliament, Judiciary, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MMDAs), Metropolitan, Municipal, District Assemblies, Anti-corruption and Law Enforcement Agencies, Independent Constitutional Bodies, the Media, Political Parties, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Businesses and Private Sector organizations chiefs and traditional rulers, faith-based organizations, international partners and the general public to contribute to the success of this evaluation” President Akufo-Addo said.

“Through the leadership of CHRAJ and the high-level implementation committee, the evaluation results will guide the design and implementation of more credible and effective anti-corruption strategies, mechanisms, and tools in NACAP 2 and promote learning, accountability, and integrity in Ghana.

“NACAP is not merely a set of strategies and policies for us, it is a commitment to the future of our beloved Ghana, it is a pledge to the people of Ghana that collectively, we are building a country that can best represent their interests, provide them with hope ad protect them against any form of abuse of power. That is the pledge that we must collectively give to the present and future generations, a pledge to which I am bound. Ghana must stand united against all forms of corruption” the President added.

*Evaluation timelines*

Government Statistician Professor Samuel Kobina Annim, as head of the leading evaluation agency (the Ghana Statistical Service) in his address, emphasized that the Ghana Statistical Service is ready to lead a broad and participatory evaluation of Ghana’s maiden NACAP, mobilize resources and stimulate interest to develop NACAP 2.

“As the leading Evaluation agency for NACAP, the Ghana Statistical Service is partnering with National Consultants/Evaluators who will guarantee some level of independent evaluation; HiLIC which will play an action evaluation role; and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to bring on board international perspectives to the evaluation exercise.

“To help place the outcome of NACAP in context and ensure the creditability of the evaluation outcomes, the evaluation exercise aims to benchmark its processes and outcomes with international standards and practices. The evaluation will span from January 2024 to June 2024, even though some preliminary activities, such as inception meetings and reports, have already been initiated to put the evaluation into a proper perspective” Professor Samuel Kobina Annim said.

“The following timelines have been set for the evaluation: 1. Public Sensitisation on the Evaluation: December 2023 – January 2024 2. HiLIC Engagement with Implementing Institutions: January – March 2024 3. Finalization of Instruments: January 2024 4. Desktop Review and Data Collection: January – April 2024 5. Data Analysis and Report Writing: April – May 2024 6. Validation and Dissemination of Evaluation Report: June 2024.

“The target of the evaluation team is to disseminate the evaluation results and outcomes six months before the 2024 national elections. It is worth mentioning that these timelines have been proposed within the scope of the evaluation exercise, with efforts to minimize potential risks as much as possible and with the support of all relevant stakeholders, implementing institutions, and the citizenry” Professor Annim added.

From: Wilberforce Asare