Strengthening of the outfit’s capacity for financial management
Posted by African Press International on November 20, 2007
Lagos, (Nigeria) The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas on Monday said chief among the achievements of the institution, was the strengthening of the outfit’s capacity for financial management, APA has learnt.
He said an external funds management in the department of finance has been set up as well as an external relations department to coordinate partner support with the finance department.
Speaking at the 5th ECOWAS/Development Partners Annual Coordination meeting in Abuja, he said a monitoring and evaluation unit has been established to monitor the progress being made by ECOWAS as an efficient and effective vehicle for the processes of integration.
He however stated that the commission had challenges such as inadequate manpower and that plans to recruit were being slowed down, but did not say why.
Chambas said regional integration was receiving a lot of attention among member states and the continents and a Vice President for regional integration has been designated at the African Development Bank.
Dr Maria de Fatima Perestrello of the European Union, one of the development partners, commended the active involvement of ECOWAS on the sensitization of its member states on the need to ratify the ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, and its active involvement in the area of election observation.
Perestrello, who is also the Ambassador of Portugal to Nigeria, said the integration would be achieved only if policies and charts were accompanied by the adoption of internal changes by member states in view of the harmonization of the required policy network.
The resident Coordinator of the United Nations System in Nigeria, Dr. Alberic Kacou, challenged the commission to extend its policy on integration to social, cultural and political spheres, not just within the realm of the economy.
Published by Korir, API/APN africanpress@chello.no source.apa
