Re-activate Area Councils to improve internal revenue - MP

Mr. Alhassan Mumuni, Member of Parliament for Salaga North, has called for the re-activation of Area Councils to boost internally generated revenue of District Assembles.

Mr. Mumuni observed that, with increased revenue mobilization through the help of the Area Councils, Assemblies could implement many developmental projects without waiting for the release of the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF).

Mr. Mumuni was speaking at the second ordinary meeting of the Kpariba Area Council on Thursday at Kpariba, where he indicated that financial aid from donors had reduced, and due to the economic challenges government is experiencing, ‘the common fund is no more forthcoming.’

He said the recent initiative by the Kpariba Area Council to set up a task force to re-activate the collection of levies from articulator vehicles which convey goods from the area, had generated about Ghc2,000 within two months, and indicated that there were more sources to generate revenue internally.

“There are some little challenges, such as fixing school doors, painting and building community latrines, which part of this internally generated revenue could be used to address, without waiting for funds from government,” he said.

Mr. Mohammed Amin Lukman, District Chief Executive (DCE) for Salaga, said “to monitor and improve upon revenue collection, the Assembly was working hard to complete the street naming project to collate data on houses and businesses."

He commended the Kpariba Area Council for its initiative, and appealed to other area councils to emulate them.

The DCE said the Salaga Assembly had started the implementation of a three-year development plan, which would help improve access to social services, provide more infrastructures and boost agro-processing.

Mr. Lukman said plans were far advanced to rehabilitate existing cassava and rice processing plants, and also to build additional groundnut processing plants, to create more jobs for the youth.

He said the Assembly in collaboration with some development partners, had procured various agricultural equipments, including plough machines and combined harvesters, to help farmers to expand their fields.

On livelihood skills development, he said the district would soon rehabilitate a structure to help train the youth in tailoring, to reduce their migration to the south to do menial jobs.

“Many road projects like the 1.8-million-cedi water facility in Kpariba and some health centres have been awarded, and that construction on them would soon commence,” he said.