Local Gov’t Ministry to work from Kumasi

The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development would move the whole administrative wing to the Ashanti Region where it would be working from.

Mr Emmanuel K. Agyekum, Deputy Minister of the Ministry in an interview with Ghana news Agency, said the exercise is in response and support to the president’s initiative of holding Cabinet meetings in the Regional capitals to get closer to the people.

He said in the quest of the Ministry to champion decentralisation “we have decided to move the whole Ministry to work in each of the regions for two weeks so as to work closer with the people in their communities”.

“As a first step, we are moving to the Ashanti Regional capital- Kumasi to start the process from Monday, December 22 and work for two weeks,” he said.

While in Kumasi, the Deputy Minister said the team would be engaging and interacting with the District Chief Executives, the Regional Co-ordinating Council and other stakeholders as well as the public to learn about what is on the ground as far as the local government administration is concerned.

Mr Agyekum said the Ministry would go to the various districts assemblies each day to interact with the officials as well as the chiefs and people in the communities.

The aim of the exercise which would be carried out nationwide from next year is to help the Ministry and its staff to get closer to the people who are also expected to get closer to the Ministry through the interactions “so that we can share their complaints, challenges and successes”.

According to the Deputy Minister, the National Sanitation Day (NSD) programme which was usually highlighted in the Greater Accra Region would be concentrated in the Ashanti Region, this month because of the movement and in solidarity with the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who had constantly participated in the exercise.

While in Kumasi, the team would be working with the local people to plant trees as part of the NSD, to help make Kumasi green, Mr Agyekum said.

He appealed to people in the Kumasi metropolis and the Region in general to help make the exercise a success.

He also asked to the community members to embrace the initiative and provide all the needed support to make it successful and contribute in building the nation.