As government initiates public consultations on the 2021 budget, civil society groups, through the Non State Actors (NSA) advisory panel, have access to training on ‘Introduction to the Budget and Budget Process’.
The three, two-hour training sessions will be delivered by Laurel Bain, retired Assistant to Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, (Sir Dwight Venner deceased); Dr Juliette Melville, retired from the Caribbean Development Bank and representatives from the Ministry of Finance.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Dr Keith Mitchell, speaking via Zoom to the 2021 Youth Budget Consultation, said “we have to look at ways of raising revenues differently,” while Minister of Youth Development Kate Lewis said “it will take the innovation and commitment from you young people to move this country forward with the current challenges confronting us.”
The theme of the 2021 budget is ‘Towards Vision 2035: Recovery, Transformation and Resilience’ and will address ways to “transform the economy” in the midst of a global pandemic, according to the Minister of Finance.
Noting that the budget is “delivered in technical jargon that makes it inaccessible,” the intent of the NSA workshop is to demystify the budget and improve the budget literacy and capacity of participating organisations.
“At the end of the training, participants will be able to analyze the national budget; monitor and review the performance of the national budget; make informed and timely inputs/recommendations to the government on behalf of their particular sector and advocate for budgetary changes,” according to Grenada’s NSA advisory panel.
The three virtual training sessions will be delivered from 4 to 6 pm on September 16, 23 and 30.
NSA advisory panels are established through the Cotonou Partnership Agreement between the European Union (EU) and African, Caribbean and Pacific States; and comprise organisations representing civil society.
Signatories representing the following groups and categories (in parenthesis) are on the Co-operation Protocol of Grenada’s NSA advisory panel: Media Workers of Grenada (media); Grenada National Organisation of Women (women); Private Sector Organisation; Herman Peters (disabled); Joseph Antoine (environment and heritage); TAMCC (community based organisation); D Campbell (farmers); Roger Williams (health); Judy Williams (development non-government organisation); faith based organisation (AEG); and Grenada Association of Retired Persons (elderly).
In subsequent meetings of the panel, participating groups included People In Action, North West Development Authority, Grenada Network of Rural Women Producers, Friends of the Earth Grenada, Grenada National Association of the Disabled, Alliance of Evangelical Churches, Obama for Peace Foundation, Grencoda and the Genesis Nutmeg Value Added Co-operative.
