By Iddi Yire, GNA
Accra, Oct. 05, GNA – Mr Mahama Ayariga, the Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, has announced the Government’s decision to remodel its flagship programme, 24-Hour Economy Markets, to be known as District Economy Markets.
This, he said, would ensure that every district got a model market.
The Minister made the revelation on Monday in his presentation at the Government Accountability Series Press Conference held at the Presidency in Accra.
“Regarding the promotions of the redesign of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Economy Markets Policy, and let me be very, very clear here, we noticed I didn’t say 24-Hour Economy Markets,” Mr Ayariga said.
‘The use of the 24-hour economy markets has tended to create the impression that the whole thing about government’s flagship programme of 24-Hour Economy is about markets.”
He said these markets were at various stages of construction and implementation in the middle of the 261 Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies and they had re-scoped them into two phases with the first phase effectively delivering the market stores, sheds, and the essential commercial spaces.
Mr Ayariga said there was a second phase which delivered the social amenities such as Police station, fire station, and other social amenities that have been incorporated into the builder.
He said they re-scoped it into two phases to enable a speedier delivery of the markets and a more structured financing to achieve 100 per cent completion by 2028.
He said subsequently phase two would kick off with future funding arrangements under the same district assembly common fund.
The Minister said they had set up a committee to review the pace of work and contractors who display lack of capacity would have their contracts terminated and reassigned to more competent contractors.
He said funding for phase one was readily available for those who complete their contracts.
Mr Ayariga said they were discussing the capacity of assemblies to establish education institutions, those build more tools, develop healthcare facilities, build more clinics, implement water supply systems, build more board boards and small-town water systems, establish sanitation infrastructure, and finally implement development projects.
He said in the area of health, they had about 397 out of 566 CHPS and health centres completed by the various assemblies, 502 out of 761 classroom blocks completed within a year and a half, 3,081 out of 4,029 mechanised and hand pump boreholes completed and 97 out of 134 small-town water projects completed.
Mr Ayariga noted that additionally, they successfully conducted the night cycle of the District Assemblies Performance Assessment (D-PATs), a system where district assemblies are assessed based on certain criteria.
Mr Ayariga said approximately GHS 840 million Ghana had been transferred to all MMDAs this year to implement activities in their annual action plans as a result of the D-PAT programme.
He said the Ministry for the first time in the history of local governance and decentralisation had facilitated the release and disbursement of four trenches in the sum of GHS 107 million in respect of consolidated monthly allowances in 2025 and GHS 106 million for 2026 to all assembly members.
“I’m happy to announce to assembly members that this year’s allocation has been transferred by the Controller Accountant General,” he said.
GNA
Edited by Linda Asante Agyei