MNPDC proposes new Planning Bill
The Ministry of National Planning and Development Coordination (MNPDC) is proposing a new planning bill.
Permanent Secretary (PS) for the National Planning Ministry Susan Sulu in an exclusive interview with SIBC said the proposed Planning Bill aims to provide a strong legal base for planning activities, ensuring a more systematic and effective approach.
“What we want on the Planning Bill is to ensure that the processes of planning are grounded on specific pieces of legislation that give that backing to that process.
“So that is in terms of the expected planning, of course, not pre-empting whatever policies and processes are there, but this is a fundamental aspect that needs to be strengthened.
“For example, in terms of the budget process…whilst we have guidelines, and whilst it is anchored on the Public Financial Management Act at the moment, there are still deficiencies in how we plan.
“An example in terms of the preparation of projects funded out of the development budget is that, success of projects is often times influenced by good design so in our case, it is the design and the preparation that we in our experience, we see many gaps, so what we want to be able to achieve with the new the white paper or the objective of the white paper for the Planning Bill is that, we put forward suggestions, or a policy paper that would support a Planning Bill that gives rise to legislation that backs the planning process,” PS Sulu explained.
In parallel, the ministry has completed a planning manual which offers a step-by-step guide on designing projects effectively.
The manual, currently undergoing graphic design before publication, targets public offices and aims to enhance their ability to think strategically.
“Not necessarily just ideas, but how they think about solutions to problems, and properly planned for projects in order to address those issues.
“We hope that it would help to improve gaps and deficiencies of planning process design,” PS Sulu said.
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By Alex Dadamu