The Chairman of the Manifesto Committee on Science and Technology of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Emmanuel Marfo, has called for constitutional reforms to strengthen the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) to guide the country’s long-term development agenda.

That, he explained, would reduce the dominance of political party manifestos.

He emphasised the need to empower the NDPC as an independent body with Cabinet status to ensure national development plans remained the core blueprint for the country’s growth.

Dr Marfo made the call in Accra last Tuesday during the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) presidential dialogue on science, technology and innovation.

The purpose of the dialogue was to engage the 2024 presidential candidates in impactful discussions on policies, strategies and initiatives that would accelerate the country’s economic growth by promoting science, technology and innovation.

Reforms

Dr Marfo argued that party manifestos, while important, should align with broader national development goals rather than setting the development agenda.

“Currently, party manifestos seem to hold more influence than our national plans but this should not be the case. Development plans must guide policy actions and manifestos should simply outline how a party intends to achieve these plans,” he said.

To address this, he proposed constitutional amendments that would give the NDPC autonomy and elevate its chairperson to a cabinet-level position.

That, he said, would allow the commission to work closely with the government, ensuring that long-term strategies such as infrastructure development, economic growth and environmental sustainability were maintained regardless of which political party is in power.

“We need to amend the Constitution to enshrine the requirement for a national development plan every 10 or 20 years, which should serve as the foundation for political party manifestos. This would prevent the national plan from becoming a bystander to political documents,” he added.

Dr Marfo also spoke on the importance of aligning national goals with scientific and technological advancements, emphasising the need for a sustainable funding model for key research initiatives. 

Galamsey

On the ongoing issue of illegal mining in the country, he proposed a more comprehensive approach, beginning with a nationwide geological survey to identify mineral-rich areas and avoid the destructive “trial-and-error” approach currently employed by illegal miners.

“People know there’s gold in this country, but we lack a detailed geological map of where it is. We need to invest in a national geological assessment so that we can allocate resources responsibly and avoid the environmental destruction caused by indiscriminate mining,” Dr Marfo stated.

That, he said, would ensure that local stakeholders were directly involved in the granting of licenses and held accountable for monitoring mining activities in their jurisdictions..