Hajia Alima Mahama
MINISTER OF Local Government and Rural Development, Hajia Alima Mahama, has stated that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration is on course to fulfill its 2016 manifesto promises in the areas of local government and rural development.
She made this observation when she was addressing journalists yesterday during the ‘Meet the Press’ series under the auspices of the Ministry of Information.
The minister used the occasion to render account to Ghanaians as to what her ministry has been doing within the last 16 months in office.
Madam Hajia Alima Mahama indicated that her outfit had improved the local governance system across the country.
Promises
The NPP promised in its 2016 manifesto to among other things, decentralize and equip the Land Valuation Board (LVB) to provide direct technical support on property valuation to MMDAs. On the party’s promise of abolishing the practice of central government manipulation of the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) through the procurement process, the minister indicated that the government had succeeded in increasing Direct Transfers to MMDAs from 35.10 percent in 2016 to 46.52 percent in 2017 and then to 53 percent in 2018, adding that “the ministry has minimized central level procurements for MMDAs using DACF.”
Again, she noted that with respect to decentralization and equipping of the LVB, the ministry had in collaboration with the Lands Valuation Division, initiated action to value and revalue lands in all the 254 MMDAs.
President Akufo-Addo’s NPP government, she said, has in fulfillment of its pledge to provide community-owned and managed small-scale irrigation facilities across the country, identified 1,221 potential dam sites suitable for the ‘One Village, One Dam’ programme.
According to her, the ministry had procured a transaction advisor to conduct feasibility studies for the development of model markets in selected urban centres, saying following the completion of the studies, the advisor will work with the ministry to identify investors for the construction of the markets. “The second phase of the Kumasi Kejetia market has been initiated.”
She further pointed out that contracts had been awarded for the construction of 20 administration blocks for district assemblies created in 2007, adding that “all contractors have moved to site and construction works are at various levels of completion.”
Transfers
Hajia Alima Mahama said the Office of the District Assemblies Common Fund had transferred a total of GH¢663,183.029.70 to all the MMDAs, noting that “this disbursement covers all quarters of 2017.”
According to her, “a total of GH¢48,715,708.86 had also been transferred to 46 participating MMDAs under the Urban Development Grant (UDG).”
She indicated that “Through the DDF/FOAT, an amount of GH¢163m for FOAT VII (2013) and GH¢41m for FOAT VIII (2014) totaling GH¢204m has been mobilized and the transfer process to the MMDAs is currently ongoing.”
Building Permit
She explained that the time taken to get building permit issued across the country has been reduced significantly as a result of an initiative being implemented by the ministry in collaboration with the Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom.
According to the minister, through the implementation of the project, her outfit had streamlined the process of obtaining Building Permit and reduced the processes from 15 to 11.
Caption: Madam Mahama addressing the press. Seated at her back are Minister of Information, Mustapha Hamid (right), Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, O.B. Amoah (second left).
BY Melvin Tarlue