Minister explains national plan
By CHITE MTONGA THE Seventh National Development Plan (7NDP) is about a paradigm shift from the country’s conventional approaches to development, to a more integrated approach says Minister of National Development and Planning (MNDP) Lucky Mulusa.
He was addresssing CIMA members at a breakfast meeting in Lusaka.
Mr Mulusa said that through the SNDP, Government was changing from the traditional approaches to development to a more inclusive approach.
He said that in the SNDP, Government would take an incorporated approach which will be aimed at involving all stakeholders in the development agenda.
Mr Mulusa urged management accountants to acquaint themselves with the document as they were key partners in development.
“It is important for you to acquaint yourselves with the SNDP, because you play a critical role in the development agenda. We rely on you to make decisions in whichever institutions you operate in which are in line with the country’s ultimate development goals,” he said.
Mr Mulusa explained that there was need for Zambia to move from economic growth to economic development.
He said that economic growth only measured an increase in GDP and the capacity to produce goods and services while economic development looked at the wider range of statistics than just the GDP per capita.
“Economic Development is concerned with how people are actually affected, It looks at the improvement of the economic, political, and social well-being of its people.it looks at their living standard,” Mr Mulusa said.
CIMA country director Gordian Bowa said that the integrated approach taken by Government in ensuring that sustainable development was achieved would encourage coordination in delivering development.
He said that increasing corporate governance and ethics would help in insuring that professionals such as accountants were effective in the execution of their duties.
Mr Bowa said that accountants had the skills to perform but most of them were not conversant with the SNDP.
“I urge our members to look at the document and try their best to contribute to national development, since we are well trained. If we are to be relevant and able to advise government on major issues that have to do with development we need to be conversant with the SNDP,” Mr Bowa said.
Mr Bowa said that the SNDP was a good document which was set for success if all stakeholders played their roles.