News:
February 8, 2019
First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu has directed the two chief whips from both sides of the House to facilitate the establishment of a joint committee towards the implementation of the 1 percent allocation of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to the development of Science and Technology.
The Chief Whips, Kwasi Ameyaw-Cheremeh and Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka from minority and majority respectively have been assigned the responsibility are to develop modalities and present report to the plenary within a month.
The action by the First Deputy Speaker follows a statement by the Member of Parliament for Oforikrom, Dr. Emmanuel Marfo who commended the policy by the President and indicated that inadequate resource allocation to public research institutions has been identified as a major reason the country has not been able to develop Science Technology and Innovation (STI) since independence.
According to him, an analysis of the 2019 budget allocations, using the 2018 GDP of some US$51billion reveals the gravity of the challenge the president has committed to.
Christian Kpesese/ ghanamps.com