CCJP calls for more accountability
Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) has expressed the need for civil society organisations (CSOs) and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working in the health sector in Karonga and Chitipa districts to improve on their accountability.
Speaking on Wednesday during the introduction of a Health Governance Transparency and Accountability Project to be implemented in the two districts, Karonga Diocese CCJP desk officer Louis Nkhata said the commission has observed that, in most cases, CSOs and NGOs are not monitored.
He said the situation does not give room for grass-root communities to take part in decision-making processes.
“We learned that in most cases it is only us, the CSOs or NGOs who come in the forefront asking for accountability from the government sector, yet we fail to be accountable on our resource allocation, utilisation and results.
“Additionally, due to limited access to information on who is working where and how, you find that there is a lot of duplication of work amongst us,” Nkhata explained.
According to Nkhata, through the project which will be implemented for one year with funding from the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (Osisa), the commission seeks to achieve collaboration among CSOs and NGOs working in the health sector in the two districts.
Chitipa district environmental officer Willy Kanyika said some NGOs start working in the district without engaging the hospital.
He said such institutions only consult the hospital during the monitoring period, which makes the hospital fail to scrutinise their activities.
The Health Governance, Transparency and Accountability Project will be implemented in six traditional authorities in Karonga and Chitipa districts to the tune of K85 million. n
