Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in the Western Region have stressed the need for government to publish the draft regulation on the Petroleum Revenue Management Act to ensure efficient and effective utilization of the petroleum revenue.
They have also called on government to properly equip the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) to help it to play its supervisory role in the utilization of the country’s petroleum revenue.
The CSOs noted that the move would also help address some of the administrative challenges in the implementation of the Petroleum Revenue Act (Act 815) passed in 2011.
They said the regulation would spell out clearly how the petroleum revenue should be managed to develop the various sectors of the economy and halt the exploitation of certain gaps and weaknesses in the current law.
This came to light at a stakeholders’ forum organized by Friends of the Nation on the review of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (PRMA) for the CSOs in the Western Region.
It was attended by members of the Western Region Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), Community Land and Development Foundation, Ghana National Canoe and Fishermen Council, some chiefs and officials from the Fisheries Commission.
They indicated that if the draft regulation is made public, it would enable various stakeholders in the country make the necessary inputs before its submission to Parliament for deliberation and final passage.
They reiterated the need for the government to fulfill its promise by establishing Western Corridor Development Authority so that certain percentage of the petroleum revenue would be allocated to the region for development interventions.
The CSOs also suggested that the recommendation of the Investment Advisory Committee (IAC) on the use of the oil and gas revenue should be binding on the Minister of Finance.
They stressed that the 70:30 allocation of the petroleum revenue to the national budget and the Petroleum Holding Fund should be strictly adhered to.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi
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