Mills: Govt committed to equitable regional development

Accra, April 21, GNA - President John Evans Atta Mills, on Thursday, reiterated the commitment of Government to ensure an equitable distribution of national resources and a fair share of development, in all the 10 regions of Ghana. He said the Government was elected into by power by the people to address their development needs and under no circumstance would it turn its back on them.

Every region in Ghana, he said, would enjoy its fair share of development, so that the people would experience improved standard of living and contribute meaningfully to the national development process.

At a meeting with a delegation from the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, which paid a courtesy call on him at the Osu Castle, in Accra, President Mills assured the people of the Volta Region and all Ghanaians that, his Administration remained committed to bringing about the development it promised Ghanaians. The delegation, led by Togbe Afede XIV, President of the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, was at the Government House to express their appreciation to President Mills and his Administration for cutting the sod to commence the construction of a state funded university in the region and for other development projects being worked on. President Mills informed the chiefs that development issues had taken centre stage at recent cabinet meetings.

The President announced that Government was committed to the construction of the Eastern Corridor Roads, because it would open up the Volta Region to the rest of the country and bring about vibrancy, as well as boosting economic activities.

President Mills said he would soon pay a working visit to the Volta Region, where he would commission and inspect a number of development projects.

He announced that the report of a delegation to China for further consultations on the promised Chinese development assistance for development projects in Ghana was ready. President Mills thanked the chiefs for their faith in Government, and assured them of interventions that would raise the standard of living of the people.

Togbe Afede appealed to Government to hasten the exploration of oil and gas in the Keta Basin. He also called for the development of the Volta Lake Basin to make it possible for the exploitation of the mineral resources in the Lake.

Togbe Afede appealed to Government to extend the rural electrification project, currently going on in the southern part of the Volta Region to the northern part. He said there was also the need to build a modern sports stadium in the region. He requested for a gas thermal plant at Keta, for the storage of oil and gas, lifted from the Jubilee Fields and Nigeria for onward distribution.