Accra: Dr Nii Moi Thompson, Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), has briefed the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, on the Commission's efforts to prepare a Ghana Consolidated National Development Plan to guide economic transformation and shared prosperity.
According to Ghana News Agency, Dr Thompson stated that the Commission was compiling four existing but unimplemented development frameworks, including the 40-Year Development Plan (2016), Ghana Beyond Aid (2019), Ghana@100 (2019), and Vision 2057 (2024), into a single plan expected to be adopted by Parliament as 'the legislated will of the people.'
He further explained that the Consolidated Plan is part of the Commission's evaluation of Ghana's 'unfinished business of development' over the past 70 years and the preparation of a medium-to-long-term Road Map for Economic Transformation and Shared Prosperity.
Dr Thompson emphasized the urgency of the matter, highlighting that Ghana has remained in a 'middle-income trap' since attaining lower middle-income status in 2010. Without legislative action to adopt the Consolidated Plan, the country risks stagnation or reversal.
The Speaker of Parliament, Mr Bagbin, expressed his support for the initiative and pledged Parliament's backing. He stressed the importance of governance and institutional reforms to achieve national development goals and highlighted Ghana's political progress under the Fourth Republic.
Mr Bagbin also noted the significance of ethics in leadership and public service, urging the NDPC to incorporate this aspect into the Consolidated Plan. He further mentioned that Ghana has become a destination for study tours by legislators from both advanced and emerging democracies.
As part of its stakeholder consultations, the NDPC is expected to brief Parliament's Committee of the Whole at the Speaker's invitation. The Commission plans to engage with political parties, traditional authorities, faith-based organisations, and the general public through a call for submissions.