A high-level delegation from Botswana tasked with developing the country’s National Security Strategy has met with the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, to learn how Ghana links national planning, budgeting and accountability, and how security issues are incorporated into the national development framework. 

The delegation, led by Mr Tefo Kaothang, comprised officials from the ministries of international relations and justice, the defence force, the intelligence service and Botswana’s National Planning Commission.

Explaining NDPC’s mandate, Dr Audrey Smock Amoah, Director-General of NDPC, said the Commission, established under Articles 86 and 87 of the Constitution, coordinates the decentralised planning system across national, regional and district levels. 

She said security and public safety fall under the governance and institutional development dimension of the President’s Coordinated Programme but run through all five dimensions, with the 2026–2029 medium-term national development policy framework providing the basis for implementation. She further noted that institutions, including the Ministries of Interior and Defence and the Judicial Service, prepare plans which NDPC certifies.

The Director of Research at the Commission, Mr Tweneboah-Kodua, said certification now determines access to funding, noting, “If you don’t get your plan certified by NDPC, you will not receive budget.” He said the change followed the Finance Minister’s decision last year to withhold third-quarter allocations from institutions without plans. 

Responding on behalf of the delegation, Mr Kaothang described the engagement as “eye-opening” and suggested inviting a Ghanaian presenter to Botswana to speak to legislators and executives. The meeting provided the Botswana team with an opportunity to understand how NDPC’s functions interface with Ghana’s national security architecture and how national plans are formulated, financed, implemented and monitored to inform the development of Botswana’s National Security Strategy.