The Deputy Speaker of the Sierra Leone Parliament, Honourable Ibrahim Tawa Conteh has called for transparency of budget from government institutions.

The Deputy Speaker made this clarion call during a meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MoPED) late last week. Hon. Conteh urged state institutions to abide by the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act which guides public institutions away from mismanagement of public funds. During the discussion the Deputy Speaker shed light on the responsibility of the Minister of Finance to submit a comprehensive quarterly report to Parliament for review. According to him, this will enable the House to fully study the management of public funds to avoid mismanagement by public institutions.

Many government institutions have called for an increase in their budget to implement some of their activities but some members of the public have accused Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of lack of transparency in the management of public funds.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Speaker has affirmed that there should be substantial evidence before any budget increment to MDAs.

This is not the first time that Hon. Conteh has called for transparency from government institutions and his appointment and this recent position has suggested that this will not be the last.