By Mark Longyen
Amb. Olawale Awe, Head, ECOWAS National Office, Nigeria, has said that the ECOWAS parliament, commision and the Administration and Finance Committee (AFC) must work in synergy to achieve success.
Awe stated this while presenting a paper at a meeting of the ECOWAS Parliament’s Joint Committee on Administration, Finance, Budget, Public Accounts, Macroeconomic Policy and Economic Research, on Tuesday, in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
Speaking on the theme: “The Working Relationship between the ECOWAS Parliament, the ECOWAS Commission and the Administration and Finance Committee (AFC), he stressed that collaboration was crucial to achieving success.
He said: “It is fundamental that these three entities work with synergy for effective coordination and collaboration to achieve the successful implementation of the Community’s policies and programs.
“It can be argued that despite their distinct functions, they all play complementary roles in the financial management of the organisation, in that there is an interplay of their respective roles and responsibilities.
“For synergy, matters relating to the Community’s economic and monetary integration policies, including the Community Budget, should be a co-decision.
“The decision should be jointly taken by the Council of Minsters and Parliament, just as the relevant acts and regulations outline,” the ambassador said.
Awe, who is also the chairman of the AFC, noted that in some instances, the issue of overlapping mandates between the different arms can become a drawback due to ambiguity.
According to him, this can culminate in lack of coordination, which he said impedes the smooth implementation of ECOWAS policies and programs.
He said that in order to enhance and optimise the working relationship between the trio, certain strategies should be deliberately adopted.
The expert explained that this was because the AFC’s role in budgetary oversight had become a more collaborative venture.
“It is imperative that the AFC works more closely with both the Parliament’s Committee on Administration, Finance and Budget Control and the Commission.
“This is to ensure that budget allocations are aligned with priorities of the Community.
“Together, transparency and accountability in the Community’s financial processes and management can be improved.
Awe said that it was only with a seamless working relationship between the three that the financial, administrative practices and processes of ECOWAS would support its regional integration and development vision.