The Executive Director of Integrity Watch Liberia, Harold Aidoo has lauded the 55th Legislature Joint Committee on Ways, Means and Finance for the first time participation of CSOs in the ongoing budget hearings.
The Joint Committee on Ways, Means, Finance and Budget of the House of Representatives and the Liberian Senate has been conducting budget hearings with government’s spending entities ahead of the passage of the 2024 draft national budget.
Civil Society actors were given the opportunity to exclusively question heads and representatives of government ministries, agencies and commissions.
Speaking with legislative reporters on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, Mr. Aidoo said during the hearings, civil society organizations, including Integrity Watch Liberia had the opportunity to raise key concerns.
“In our opinions, we are happy that we can facilitate these kinds of engagements between civil society, citizens and their legislators because the budget needs to have a mechanism where the citizens can participate in the budget process and we think that was an important first step to have civil society organizations participating in the budget process,” he said.
Mr. Aidoo said this initiative will strengthen the engagement and the oversight of the legislators. He added that it will also help those CSOs to follow-up and ensure that the actual amount allocated for each spending entity is properly expended transparently.
“The current fiscal space of the current budget is very small and we believe that by having civil society organizations to participate in the budget process, one will bring the perspectives of the issues at the community level to inform this budget discussion,” he indicated.
Integrity Watch Liberia boss said the 2024 draft national budget has a tight space to address all of the major priorities of the various institutions, stressing the need to collectively work and expand the fiscal space for national growth and development.
Aidoo disclosed that his institution will submit a “Budget Option Paper” before or during the 2025 Draft National Budget process.
