The United Nations Development Programme had begun a weeklong retreat in Ganta City, looking at in depth objective assessment of their contributions to see what had changed in the landscape and how to refocus their intervention.
When asked whether the retreat was intended to ratify some of the past errors, Mr. Anthony Ohemeng Boamah, Resident Representative of UNDP told the Daily Observer, it is not a question of ratification, rather it is a question of volumes and strategic placement.
He explained that the UNDP delivered between US$ 20/30 millions annually and taking Liberia into consideration, they want to know how these resources become a levage and become strategic.
“We can’t develop a country with, but when you want to do a right thing, it had levage, it has open opportunity, so that is the thing we look at, it is not the issue of ratification perceive, it is how we season the strategic opportunity to development in the country,’ he said.
Mr. Boamah added that the UNDP is supporting institutions capacity building, helping the government in the decentralization process, and involved in a whole lot of things to reinforce the architecture which is the bare rock of which we are transforming and developing in the country.
“If we have more resources, we will do more. There is competition in terms of development landscape and sometimes, we don’t have all the resources we need to make some of the programs bigger and more strategic,” he said.
In the forestry sector, Mr. Boamah said the UNDP is supporting the community forestry management process, telling the community the importance of forest management in a sustainable way and bringing livelihood to the people.
When asked why UNDP is venturing into road development, he said, UNDP does not do road, but has some human capital development funds which must do road, but those areas like roads the government has to negotiate with other partners.
“UNDP is purely eradicating poverty, something that has to do with a more human centered approach,’ he said.
Mr Boamah, “we do governance, poverty eradication, inclusiveness, gender equality and some of the things that make development more inclusive and cover everybody in the country”.
The Superintendent of Nimba County, Ms. Kou Meapeh Gono gave some encouraging words in her remark.
The workshop will be followed by a field trip to where the UNDP is supporting projects, interacting with beneficiaries and climax on Friday, October 4, 2024, the Resident Representative has said.
