IDEG launches campaign on aid effectiveness

The Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), a non-governmental organization (NGO), has launched a global campaign on aid effectiveness, aimed at mobilizing public support for effective use of aid to reduce poverty in the world.

The campaign dubbed: “Better Aid for the World We Want” was launched world-wide on Monday October 17, but IDEG in collaboration with three other NGOs, Better Aid, Global Call for Action Against Poverty and Open Forum, launched the Ghana campaign in Accra on Tuesday.

The campaign organized as a result of a case study conducted by IDEG on transforming the rural economy through the agriculture-led Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) program.

Mr Kojo Mpraim, Project Officer for IDEG, said similar campaigns have been launched simultaneously in Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Nicaragua, Liberia, Malawi and Nicaragua in preparation towards the up-coming South Korea meeting, scheduled to take place from November 31 to December 2.

He said IDEG had conducted an evaluation between July and August to assess the performance of three selected districts, Akuapem South, Hohoe and South Tongu that had benefited from the MCA programs in agriculture.

Mr Mpraim said the study had revealed that though the MCA program reflected aspects of the national development strategy, it needed to be integrated into the beneficiary district’s medium term development plans, to enable the community to adopt the program after its expiration in February 2012.

He said though the MCA program appeared to be making a steady progress, there was the need to make the public aware of the achievements and possible challenges of the program.

Mr Mpraim said the study indicated a modest achievement of the program’s objectives such as increasing the production of high-value cash and food crops as well as enhancing the competitiveness of the local market.

He said findings also revelation that farmers were unable to pay back loans they obtained under the program and that a broad-based stakeholders’ participation and consultative process must be championed by the government to involve civil society organizations, traditional authorities, the media and other social actors, to help create awareness and support for the program.

Source: GNA