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By
Christabel Addo / Eric Appah Marfo, RNG
Accra, April 30, GNA –
Prime Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo on Tuesday told the technocrats the challenge of
simplify tedious procedures that cause delays in payment
Certificates of contractors.
He said that some of
processes involved in the approval of payment certificates for contractors
too tedious and winding, which helped to delay delays.
The minister, who was
speaking at a forum to think about practical ways to remedy the situation,
The road sector, in particular, has too many signatories, which has the consequence
delays in authorizing compliance with payment certificates.
He said such delays
Inconsistencies in contractors' quotes to cover costs
for their interest in late payments, and to take up the challenge
depends largely on the technocrats, who had the knowledge and brain power to
make the expected changes.
Mr. Osafo-Maafo launched
the challenge when he set the tone for high-level forum discussions on:
"Value for Money", organized by the chapter of Kwame ministries in Accra
Former students of the Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), including
planners, architects, engineers, surveyors, contractors and supplies
officers.
The forum, he says,
Participants should not lament but help to find the best
solutions, bringing ideas and working together to develop
mechanisms and frameworks to optimize resources in all areas of public life.
spent.
The main minister
mentioned challenges, including the unreasonably high cost of public funding
infrastructure in Ghana, aggravated by the poor quality of the project delivered,
which was below international standards in many cases.
"Indeed, there is
the paradox of paying more for less and even for the least we get,
the quality is still diluted, "he said, and congratulated the Association for
initiative that shed more light on this very important topic.
He said that the government
had initiated implementation plans to ensure equitable delivery
infrastructure, and manage inefficiencies and wastes in the system, which
negative impact on scarce national resources.
"Dear technocrats,
we can not continue with the situation where we pay so much of our rare
resources to do little in practice, "he said, noting that the government had
taken steps to avoid current problems and ensure both quality and cost
efficiency of construction contracts.
Mr. Osafo-Maafo quoted
the development of the first ever 1,400-page complete building code, which
provided the framework for the provision of quality and standards for the
construction in all public infrastructures at the national level, and congratulated Ghana
Standards Authority to undertake this important mission.
The government, he
said, had also created the Resource Optimization Committee, under his direction
the Presidency, to ensure the standardization of the designs, the construction
materials and costs, to avoid arbitrary pricing of public infrastructure
contracts.
The committee, for
For example, standardized designs and costs for various health, education and training programs.
road infrastructure such as community-based health planning and services
(CHPS), polyclinics, district and regional hospitals, kindergartens,
primary and secondary schools and their dormitories.
Mr. Osafo-Maafo said
these standardized designs and costs would guide the purchase of contractors for
delivery of these infrastructure categories, as indicated on page 100 of
the 2019 budget declaration.
He said the work of
the committee has been completed and submitted to the economic management team
to submit to Cabinet for approval.
It would then be used
as a guide by institutions such as the Public Procurement Officer in the
commitment of contractors for public works.
Mr. Osafo-Maafo said
the work of the committee also examined in detail the process and
Financial management practices of the three sectors; Education, health and
Roads to identify practices and processes that may contribute to
the high cost of public infrastructure.
He said that the
the exercise was relatively new, it would have a significant impact and cited the
Dodowa District Hospital with 120 beds, costing $ 20 million in 2014,
an example.
Similar project,
however, it would now cost between $ 10 and $ 12 million based on proposals
the value-for-money committee.
Ms. Cynthia Bediako,
Chairman of the Chapter of Accra Ministries of KNUST Alumni, promised the
support from members to the government for contracts to be delivered to
standards to ensure the best value for money.
She said the
The badociation planned to organize a series of high-level forums for
discuss key national issues for effective development.
GNA
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