Deputy Local Govt Minister Completes Tour of 11 MMDAs in UER

Mr Augustine Collins Ntim, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development has completed a tour of all the 11 Municipal and District Assemblies in the Upper West Region to assess their performance in relation to the implementation of government policies and programmes.

The tour forms part of the sector ministry's programme of constantly monitoring and assessing the performance of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) nation-wide to ensure that they perform efficiently and effectively and in tandem with the goals and objectives of the Akufo-Addo administration.

Areas being assessed cover increased revenue generation, job creation, sanitation, security and galamsey related issues, Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ), Planting for Export and Rural Development (PERD) as well as the implementation status of development projects under the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), District Development Facility (DDF) and other programmes.

The Deputy Minister who is in charge of Rural Economic Development and Agriculture told the Municipal and District Chief Executives that the ministry was working hard to provide them with the necessary support including the timely release of the DACF and DDF to enable them to work effectively and ensure that development projects are not unduly delayed.

"When you have been given the necessary support, then there won't be any excuse for you to under-perform or fail", he stated.

"It's no longer going to be business as usual", Mr Ntim said and added that "You cannot fail the Akufo-Addo government, in particular and the New Patriotic Party in general with the golden opportunity offered you to economically empower your people and improve their lot generally through the government's well-crafted interventions and initiatives".

The Deputy Minister indicated that Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) will no longer be assessed on infrastructural development in their areas only but more importantly on the economic empowerment and development of their people.

Mr Ntim was impressed with the overall performance of the assemblies but remarked that "there is still room for improvement".

A total of 350,000 cashew seedlings have been raised by the assemblies in the region for free distribution to farmers under PFJ and PERD.

The chief executives commended the government for the timely release of the DACF and DDF which had been outstanding since 2013 and renewed their commitment to the government's agenda of building "Ghana Beyond Aid".

Caption; Mr Ntim (third from right) and Alhaji Tahiru Ishayaku (fourth from right), Wa Municipal Chief Executive with other officials of the Municipal Assembly during the tour.

Read Full Story