The
Public Investment Division (PID) of the Ministry of Finance this week organized
a capacity building workshop for Journalists from the Eastern, Volta, Ashanti,
Brong – Ahafo and the three Northern Regions on the concept of the Public
Private Partnership (PPP) and its related issues in the Ashanti Region.
The three-day capacity building workshop
equally aimed at briefing the media on how to carry out factual and accurate
reports on PPPs.
Mrs.
Magdalene Apenteng, Director of the Public Investment Division, Ministry of
Finance, in her opening statement indicated that, the main objective of the
Workshop was to create awareness, improve knowledge and understanding on PPPs,
and to attract advocacy for PPPs on a national level. This was read on her
behalf by Mr. Michael Kwatia Awuah, PPP capacity building Specialist.
According
to Mrs. Apenteng, the understanding of PPPs can only be achieved through
systematic public information and education through the media, and dialogue
with key stakeholders hence the need for building the capacity of Journalists
has become crucial for the survival of the PPP Program.
Professor
Linus Abraham, a media expert and a resource person at the workshop, urged the
participants to cultivate the habit of civic journalism which guarantee the use
of building stories around the thematic areas of PPP rather than the adopting
the watchdog journalism style which only deals with episodic story telling
instead of focusing on the thematic stories.
According
to him understanding the Public Investment Division (PID) and its work, and
gaining access to its key themes and messages, provides the basis for
developing story ideas and story angles that go beyond simple episodic stories
whiles “thematic stories,” build the public’s understanding and knowledge of
what PPPs are, their processes, and importance to the economic development of
the nation.
Mr.
Micheal Kwatia Awuah , a PPP capacity building Specialist noted that, PPP
enables Government to provide better infrastructure and services by adopting
some of the efficiencies and good practices of the private sector .
Also,
it frees public resources that would have been used for such project for other
equally important uses. The private sector, on its part, derives benefit from
the revenue generated from the projet.
‘’Generally
we see the PPP program as necessary and good for the country ‘’, noted Mr.
Awuah.
This,
he said is due to the fact that government does not have enough funds to undertake
the entire needed infrastructure project.
‘’It
has work for many countries like British, USA, Canada, India and many more in
terms of developing and we must make it
work for us here, ‘’He added.
Mr.
Awuah stressed that it is important to note that the PPP arrangement
significantly impacts on some core values which are different from the
traditional relationship between public institution and citizens.
He noted that PPP project cut across all
spheres of the economy; from transportion to health, business to community
development, new government projects supported by the private sector are taking
over.
