17th August, 2015
PRESS RELEASE
BudgIT partners with Omidyar Network to Track Edo 2015 Capital Projects
BudgIT in collaboration with Omidyar Network is implementing a project through the use of Tracka to track the Edo State capital projects listed in the 2015 budget. Considering the challenge of transparency in the country, the most effective method to reach the masses is through the implementation of capital projects. Lots of funds are allocated as capital expenditure yet some projects are left undone. The plan is to follow up with the communities/beneficiaries and facilitators of the project. This project will enable citizens own the project and actively track capital projects in their community.
The project will focus on 24 communities in the state where capital projects are awarded and would have community tracking teams within the locality. Tracka will work with stakeholders in the community and also with CSOs as partners.
The project will ensure feedback to citizens using social media and also contact parliamentary, executive bodies and key institutions to close the feedback loop and also aggregate feedback and build actionable intelligence for/from these institutions.
As citizens of Nigeria, it is important that we ensure transparency and accountability regarding the use of funds. The Omidyar Network project should challenge governments to ensure that the funds are expended effectively and not as a tool for corruption.‘ says Oluseun Onigbinde Lead Partner/ Co-Founder at BudgIT.
‘It is increasingly important for civil society to engage government on the use of the funds and the need for continuous accountability regarding implementation of capital projects.‘ says Agunloye Tolutope, Project Manager,BudgIT who is coordinating the project.
For more updates on the projects tracked, visithttp://tracka.ng/project/edoproject2015
ABOUT BUDGIT
BudgIT as an idea was conceptualised and hacked at the Tech-In-Governance, a 48 hour gathering organised by Co-Creation Hub in February 2011. BudgIT as a tool aims to redefine participatory governance. Many Nigerians, with little or no knowledge of accounting and public finance management, are lost when they see (if they ever get the chance to) the budgets of the different arms of government. Most media releases of the Nigerian budget only have the macro figures as the finer details that trickle down to the citizens such as neighbourhood projects are not fully explained. The maze of millions and billions in the “thick” budget documents tend to confuse and it is difficult to put clear context on how public funds are actually spent.
BudgIT’s innovation within the public circles comes with a creative use of government data by either presenting them in simple tweets, interactive format or infographic displays. We believe that in a democracy, every citizen has the right to know how his/her taxes are expended in the delivery of public infrastructure and services. Equality and open access to governance is entrenched in democracy and its institutions and as such, budgetary information as a vital asset needs to be understandable and accessible to all Nigerians. BudgIT offers mobile and online solution to trigger discussions around the budget and take the budget beyond a news item to a focal point of debate among Nigerians.
You can contact BudgIT via email [email protected] and visit our websiteswww.yourbudgit.com andwww.tracka.ng
