Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala El-Said said the “participatory budgeting” initiative is the first step to involve citizens in planning the country’s budget, according to a statement by the Ministry of Planning on Thursday.
It comes on the sidelines of a Wednesday seminar hosted at Alexandria University via video conference, in cooperation with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), to discuss the participatory budgeting and increase the efficiency of public spending in light of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.
During the seminar, El-Said highlighted Egypt Vision 2030 which represents the strategic framework of the state’s development plans and ensures that all parts of the private sector and civil society are involved in the sustainable development.
Ramy Galal, Advisor to the Minister of Planning and Economic Development for Media Affairs and the official spokesperson for the ministry, said they launched several mechanisms to activate the participatory budgeting, such as “Minister Answers” application to communicate with citizens, especially youth. The app encourages citizens to present their ideas and proposals, in addition to “Share 2030” app that allows people to follow up on the progress of the various national projects nationwide.
Moreover, Yara Nour El-Din, Head of the Communication and Partnerships Unit at the Ministry of Planning, said the initiative aims to enhance transparency and accountability by monitoring and analysing local problems.
