Tanoso, (Ahafo), Sept. 18, GNA – Alhaji Abubakar Musah, the Tano North Municipal Coordinating Director in the Ahafo Region has commended the German government for promoting good governance and local accountability in the municipality.
He expressed the hope that Ghana’s bilateral relations with Germany would be deepened for mutual benefits.
Mr Musah noted that implementation of GIZ’s Social Accountability for Resilient Democracy (SARD) project in the municipality was making useful outcomes and impacting positively on the local communities and the lives of the people in local governance.
MIHOSO International Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) with support from the GIZ is implementing the Social Accountability for Resilient Democracy (SARD) project.
SARD is a project under the GIZ’s Participation, Accountability, And Integrity for a Resilient Democracy (PAIReD) programme.
It seeks to strengthen the capacities of public institutions in Ghana to effectively implement citizen-oriented, trustworthy and accountable governance at national and local levels.
The PAIReD programme was commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and co-funded by the European Union (EU) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Cooperation (SECO).
It is being implemented by GIZ in partnership with the Ministry of Finance (MoF), Ghana.
Mr Musah gave the commendation when a delegation from the German government visited the Municipality to assess the impact of the project execution.
They comprised representatives from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), KfW, Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
Addressing a forum at Tanoso in the Municipality, Mr Musah called on the German to extend the projects, saying that the establishment of the Social Audit Committee under the SARD was facilitating the holistic development of the communities.
He said five-member SAC comprising Assembly Members, Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and citizen groups now served as the link between the Assembly and the local people in promoting local governance.
Alhaji Musah told the German delegation that through the effective monitoring activities of the SAC, the assembly had identified and completed 11 physical development projects and handed them over to the respective communities for use.
In a brief background, Mr Thomas Benarkuu, the Chief Executive Officer of MIHOSO explained that SAC was set up under the SARD project, saying that through regular project monitoring, evidence-based reporting, and dialogue with duty bearers, it had enhanced public oversight of development interventions.
He said MIHOSO was executing the SARD project in Asutifi North District, Asunafo South District, and Tano North Municipality of the Ahafo Region as well as Sunyani West Municipality and Dormaa West District of the Bono Region.
The 12-months project seeks to promote citizens participation in local governance, empower them to demand accountability from local government/public actors at the district levels and as well as to support implementing district assemblies to boost their revenues through internally generated funds (IGF).
Mr Bosse Alexander Klama, Communications, GIZ Ghana explained that the visit aimed at observing first-hand how citizens in the Municipality were organised to monitor the activities and performance of local authorities in the implementation of public physical infrastructure projects.
Mr Emmanuel Owusu Boadu, the Headmaster of the Tanoso Presbyterian Basic School commended the activities of the SAC, saying that through the committee construction work on a Kindergarten Block project for the school had been completed and handed over for.
GNA
Reporter: Dennis Peprah /Kenneth Odeng Adade
Email: [email protected]