Accra: Government funded projects in Nzema East and Sekondi-Takoradi assemblies monitored by the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) have revealed a re-occurring lack of proper needs assessment, consultation, and the involvement of beneficiaries from project start to finish.
According to Ghana News Agency, the GACC noted the creation of parallel government institutions aside from the technocrats within the assemblies, the awarding of contracts from the nation's capital without the involvement of the specific district authorities for which the contract was to be executed, and limited project information continued to hamper quality infrastructure delivery to ensure the citizenry benefitted.
The monitoring covered projects in the two districts, which included Kojokrom markets and community Centre, BU community centre, Sofokrom Hasaacas Park, Kwesimintsim U-drainage, schools, and 80 market in Ellembelle: 40 open and 40 lockable stalls believed to have been funded with Oil monies.
The stakeholders within the assemblies were revealed at an advocacy and dissemination engagement with civil societies, opinion and community leaders, Assembly and unit committee members on these supposed ABFA funded projects. The project's theme, 'From Disclosure to Impact: Mobilising Local Civil Society to verify Published Extractives Data and Advocate for equitable and accountable spend of Funds,' has raised awareness in communities on the need to galvanize actions for real development that meets the specific needs of communities.
Nana Egya Kwamina XI, the Chief of Apremdo, emphasized the necessity for project implementers to engage community leaders and citizens for real needs assessment and project placement. He highlighted that projects were funded from state coffers and not by any political party, urging politicians to engage constituents to gain their trust in developmental issues.
Madam Mary Mensah expressed frustration with contractors, urging respect for indigenous knowledge and lamenting the infrastructure issues impacting her daily life. Mr. Napoleon Oduro, Assembly member of Kojokrom, criticized the exclusion of representatives from consultations due to party affiliations, noting how political divisions hinder community development.
Mr. Aziz Mahmoud, a monitoring and evaluation officer at Sekondi-Takoradi Infrastructural Transparency Initiative (CoST), aligned with the findings, stressing the need for community engagement, citizens monitoring, and transparency in central government projects. Mr. Samuel Harrison-Cudjoe, a Programme officer of the GACC, warned against partisan-driven approaches and parallel authorities impacting infrastructure delivery.
As the government plans to finance the 'big push' with oil monies, citizens are urged to be active participants in state development affairs. The GACC project, sponsored by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), spans four regions and involves five districts and 35 projects under consideration. Madam Beauty Emefa Narteh, the Executive Secretary to GACC, encouraged participants to use the information to drive reforms in their assemblies. The monitoring outcomes were presented by Stephen Ernest Buah for STMA, and Gifty Polley for Nzema East, members of the Local Accountability Network of GACC.