By Adekola Afolabi

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A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Ondo State Government and BudgIT Foundation has been signed to further ensure open budget and  budget credibility for better service delivery.

BudgiT Foundation, a civic organisation that applies technology for citizen engagement with institutional improvement to facilitate societal change. It focuses on maintaining open budget.

The Secretary to the State Government, Princess Oladunni Odu signed the MoU on behalf of the state government.

The MoU was signed yesterday at the ongoing Retreat programme for Political Office Holders and Accounting Officers at Mydas Resort and Hotel, Owo.

Speaking after signing the documents, Princess Oladunni Odu, disclosed that the purpose of the contract signing was to showcase the transparency of the present administration in the utilisation of public funds and service delivery to the people.

According to her, with the contract being signed, it would provide full disclosure of what the government is doing with public funds, budget preparation, procurement and implementation.

She emphasized that the new development is part of the transformation plans of Governor Akeredolu to ensure that every one in the state has the opportunity of discussing what goes on in government and gives feedbacks on it.

Also, the Director General of Performance and Projects Implementation and Monitoring Unit (PPIMU), Mr. Babajide Akeredolu said BudgIT Foundation is an open governance initiative to make budget transparent and accessible to the citizenry.

He said one of the primary reasons the state government is partnering the Foundation is to track the state’s budget to further ensure budget transparency and accessibility to the citizenry.

Babajide disclosed that government’s collaborate with the Foundation would further ease projects tracking and implementation for operational efficiency.

The Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Pastor Emmanuel Igbasan, said the partnership would open new windows of opportunity for the state to further meet its developmental agenda and also craft credible budget.

Igbasan informed the foundation that the state government is open and transparent with data integrity.