Twenty five Municipal Assemblies to kickstart GSCSP in Ghana
Twenty five Municipal Assemblies (MAs) are participating in the first phase of the Ghana Secondary Cities Support Programme (GSCSP) of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD).
The four year programme would be funded by a $100 million credit facility from the World Bank and would be based on the World Bank’s Programme for Results (PforR) design.
Under the programme, participating assemblies will receive grants based on results they produce and will have to work hard to qualify for funds to be transferred to them for investment.
The programme is targeting investment in areas such as waste management, storm drain systems, urban roads, street lights, pedestrian walk ways, integrated urban market facilities and transport terminal and disaster management.
Speaking at the launch of the GSCPS in Koforidua, the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Hajia Alima Mahama, said the programme will focus on improving institutional performance of urban management and basic urban services in participating MAs.
She said her Ministry is committed to strengthening the capacity of officers in the participating assemblies to enable them improve infrastructure and service delivery.
Hajia Mahama urged the beneficiary assemblies in the first phase to be grateful that they have been selected and must work hard to justify their inclusion.
She said that the World Bank would appreciate the need to bring on board many more municipalities as soon as possible to enable them benefit from programmes which was to ensure sustainable development.
The Programme Coordinator of the World Bank, Urban and Disaster Risk Management for West and Central Africa Region, Ms Barbry Keller, said the programme was to build on the Local Government Capacity Support Project and the Government’s broader decentralization support programme.
She said the GSCSP will be implemented using the Government of Ghana system and therefore, it was essential to synchronize the District Performance Assessment Tool (DPAT) assessment for the release of the grants to all the local governments.
The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Eric Kwakye Darfour said, Ghanaians living in participating municipalities will have improved access to efficient urban services such as better roads, education, healthcare, reduced flooding, employment generation and a generally well-built and planned environment.
The Omanhene of the New Juaben Traditional Council, Daasebre Oti Boateng, said the key to the resilience and survival of secondary cities in the country lies in the good governance of both community and national level.
He called for strong community partnership and linkages to be built with the MAs through communication and information flow mechanisms to strengthen the sharing of ideas and experiences to assist in upgrading of local capacities.
Source: GNA