Community Members not Benefitting from Constituency Projects due to Poor Implementation - CMT

The Community Monitoring Team (CMT) of a Pan African NGO, Connected Development (CODE), has expressed concerns about the poor implementation of constituency projects, stating that community members are not benefitting from these projects. The lack of transparent practices and corruption by officials and contractors executing the projects have resulted in a significant loss for the communities involved.

Mrs Ladi Bonat, Coordinator of CODE's CMT in Lere Local Government Area of Kaduna State, addressed these issues during a town hall meeting held on Friday. The meeting aimed to deepen citizens' interest in government spending and address the accompanied corrupt practices in project implementation.

According to Mrs Bonat, citizens, communities, and activists have not paid sufficient attention to government spending on project implementation, allowing individuals responsible for poor implementation, abandonment, and corruption to get away with their actions. To counter this, CODE has established CMTs made up of members from different community structures. These CMTs mobilize citizens, train them, and empower them to track the implementation of constituency projects.

The results of citizen monitoring have been impressive, leading to the completion of some projects and engagement with government officials regarding abandoned projects. The Follow the Money strategy adopted by the communities has proved effective in tracking government spending on various projects.

CODE has been implementing the Deepening Citizens Interest in Government Spending and Addressing Accompanied Corrupt Practices (DeSPAAC) project for the past three years. To sustain the momentum and deepen the outcomes of the project, the town hall meeting was organized to review project performance and present key findings from monitoring activities in the last two years.

The meeting also introduced constituency project nomination monitoring tools to enhance monitoring and reporting. By actively engaging citizens and empowering them with knowledge and skills, CODE aims to strengthen the synergy between communities, government officials, and anti-corruption agencies.

Citizens' active participation in budget preparation, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation is crucial for quality service delivery. It ensures that the needs of the people are met and promotes transparency and accountability in project implementation. CODE also emphasizes the importance of government responsiveness to community advocacy and action.

The DeSPAAC project by CODE, with support from the MacArthur Foundation, aims to empower marginalized communities to demand quality goods and services from the government. Through their "Follow the Money" initiative, CODE influences dialogue, transparency, and accountability in governance across nine African countries.

The town hall meeting was attended by various stakeholders, including government officials, community and religious leaders, women, youth, implementing agencies, and the Community Monitoring Teams. The collective effort and engagement of these stakeholders are essential for ensuring the successful outcomes of the DeSPAAC project.

Source of content: OOO News 2023-08-26 News

More detailed, more comprehensive, fresher news, please visit OOO NEWS.