According to the participants, the four thematic areas — preparation of the plan of action, the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and the questionnaire — are making it difficult for implementing countries to undertake the process effectively.

A participant from Kenya, Muratha Kinuthia, said the 88-point questionnaire, must be simplified to cater for all groups that are to take part in the process.

“It should be broken into levels from students in secondary schools to professors at the university.”

He suggested that sample questionnaires from countries that have been reviewed should be made available to countries in waiting to speed up the procedure.

Ambassador Isaac Aluko-Olukun from Nigeria called on the countries that have been reviewed to recommend how to simplify the APRM process in order to meet the recommendation of speedy implementation as spelt out during the sixth African governance forum held in Kigali, Rwanda, in May this year.

“Discussing thematic areas with illiterate households in Nigeria is time consuming,” he said adding that without simplification, it will be difficult for African countries that are under review to complete the process.

However NEPAD General Manager, Communications and Marketing, Thaninga Shope-Linney, said the APRM document is location-specific and not generic. It should be tailored according to the environment of the country involved.

“Take the document and customise it,” she said. “It cannot be applicable to each and every country as it is only for guidance. There is no way you can have one document that caters for all African countries.”

She urged African nations to be careful with groups that are ready to use economic power to take over and distort the APRM process.

Source : nepad news, novembre 3, 2006