The African Center for Parliamentary Affairs (ACPA), is advocating for the establishment of the Parliamentary Budget Office as part of efforts to improve oversight responsibility on public financial management.

According to Executive Director of the Center, Dr Rasheed Draman, the Office will significantly improve parliament’s oversight responsibility.

He explained that over the years, Parliament has been not be able to effectively conduct oversight role of the national budget and management of public finances.

“Some years back, we did a study which is called Africa Parliamentary Index, and we looked at the powers of parliaments in Africa on overseeing the budget and public financial management in general. And honourable has made reference to Uganda and Kenya, our parliament was last among seven parliaments in terms of financial oversight.

“Uganda and Kenya were at the top because they have this budget committee and they also have a Budget Act. And they also have what is called a parliamentary budget office. We’ve been struggling here up to this day to have that office set up. So, through this private member's bill that he’s been referring to, I’ve been part of the process sponsored by the leaders, I just hope it finds the light of day just like these standing orders,” he said in an interview on Accra-based JoyNews.

Dr Rasheed Draman further noted the Parliamentary Budget Office when instituted will support the work of lawmakers in analysing government’s budget, allocations, proposals and enhance research duties for committees in the House.

“As it is right now, sometimes they go and interrogate the budget shooting in the dark because parliament is constrained in a way because if you look at the research department for instance, we have a research department but the number if you look at the ratio of researcher per MP is very low.

If you look at the committee level, one committee clerk is serving many committees, overstretched, and now they have the clusters and so on. So, if you have this parliamentary budget office, it is similar to what is in the US called Congressional Budget Office which has more than 3,000 staff," he stressed.

He continued, “People with backgrounds from artificial intelligence, mathematics, down to zoology so that if there’s any matter concerning the budget or for that matter any bill that comes before parliament this will be the body – and it’s fiercely independent.

I just hope ours will also be fiercely independent because in many countries like in US and Canada, sometimes the government will come in with some kind of projections and the parliamentary budget office will come and say ‘no this is not going to hold."

MA/SARA

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