EAPAC and SADCO members to share ideas on public spending

Members of public accounts committees from the eastern and southern Africa are in Rwanda for a two-day conference at which they will exchange best practices for managing public funds.

The delegates are from East Africa public Accounts committee (EAPAC) and Southern African Development Community Organization of public Accounts Committees (SADCO). The ten countries represented are Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, Angola, Tanzania, Southern Sudan, Sudan, Kenya and Zimbabwe. The conference was at Hotel Lemigo.

The president of Public Accounts (PAC) in Rwanda, Juvenal Nkusi, said: “We have gathered here to share ideas and experiences of our job as people responsible for public funds management with different members from different countries with sole motive of learning from each other to end corruption in Africa.’’

Rwanda will only take those ideas that fit with our national agenda but not everything that is said here, added Nkusi.

African countries have a lot wealth to develop the continent but a lot of resources supposed to cater for public needs like roads and hospitals are diverted to personal use by public officials – a problem that has crippled Africa in general.

Rwanda is the only new member and only country that has improved its strategies in managing public funds through proper channels as mentioned by regional president of East African Public Accounts committee (EAPAC).

“Rwanda has shown a huge improvement in managing public funds through proper channels and me as a leader of (EAPAC) committee which is made up of 8 countries, Rwanda is the only country that has managed to show a lot of efforts in managing public funds and fully backed by political will” said by Kassiano E. Wadri the president of PAC in East African region.

This work is more complicated because we have to fight against corrupted people who see us as enemies destructing them from diverting public funds into personal use. Added by Kassiano