By Mustapha Sesay
Pro-Chancellor of the University of Sierra Leone has said that to excel the country should plan, develop and implement strong policies.
Rev. Canon Dr. Modupeh Taylor-Pearce made this statement at the official launch of the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) by the University at Parliament Building, Tower Hill in Freetown. He said “we must avoid mediocre policies and harness our best brains into think tanks.”
Delivering the overview of the CPS, Acting Director of the Centre, Dr. Michael Kargbo said it would function as a semi-autonomous unit of the University and be based at the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM). He said it was largely a research centre that would seek to provide advice, ideas and solutions to politicians, policymakers and other interested bodies on matters of public policy.
Dr. Kargbo said the Centre would encourage the participation of academics and civil society groups in public policy development and national governance with the object to influence and inform the adoption and implementation of public policy options. To achieve these aims, he went on, it would pursue a number of specific objectives such as providing quality teaching and training in policy formulation and implementation; identify, articulate and evaluate current or emerging issues, problems and proposals.
The Organizing Committee’s chairperson who doubles as Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Fourah Bay College, Bernadette Cole, said the idea of CPS started some eight years ago at Fourah Bay College but that it encountered some difficulty which she said stalled its implementation.
The highlight of the launch was a keynote address that took the form of a guest lecture by former World Bank Country Director in Sierra Leone and now Adviser-Consultant to the Centre for Policy Analysis, Ghana, Dr. James Sackey, who made a presentation on the topic: “The Role of Think Tanks in the National Policy Process of Sub-Saharan Africa”.
Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Dr. Samura Kamara launched the centre.
(c) Politico 08/11/12
