PRIME Minister Hon James Marape has announced to the people of Papua New Guinea that a National Monitoring Authority (NMA) will be set up next year to ensure that the National Budget is implemented and that the Government’s visions and aspirations are realised.
He said today (December 1, 2022), fresh from delivery of the 2023 Budget on Tuesday (November 29, 2022), that the NMA would be comprised of bodies like National Research Institute, National Economic and Fiscal Commission, Transparency International, National Council of Churches and others.
“We will also have representation of the Provincial Governors, Inter-Government Relations Department, and Central Agencies,” PM Marape said.
“We will check and ensure that all intentions of the Budget are delivered to expectations.
“We have just delivered the biggest-ever K24.5 billion Budget and we want to ensure that it delivers positive outcomes for the country.
“We want to develop our country and not waste and squander money on unnecessary areas.
“Our focus for 2023 is Law-and-Order, Education, Health, Infrastructure and Economic Development.
“We want our people to develop their agriculture, forestry, fisheries, tourism and others instead of being overly dependent on oil, gas and mining.”
PM Marape said the 2023 Budget had noble intentions for PNG and the NMA – with representation of the people of PNG – would keep a close eye on implementation of the 2023 Budget and others into the future.
“We are also looking at getting professional auditing firms to audit Government books, and check Government programmes, to ensure that we are working for our people,” he said.
“We are also looking at engaging independent recruitment firms to recruit police, soldiers, warders and public servants to ensure that we get the best young people without accusations of bias and nepotism.
“We want the Budget to deliver for our people, instead of appropriating and spending without ensuring maximum return, as we have done for the last 47 years.”
