By Christopher Tetteh, GNA
Kumasi (Ashanti), Nov. 02, GNA-Professor Lord Mensah, the Head of the Local Government Service (LGS) says inadequate personnel remain a major challenge confronting the Physical Planning Departments of the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).
He said that: “Under staffing has been a problem”, saying that the country required about 1,200 Physical Planners for effective national development planning.
Prof Mensah raised the concern in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the sidelines of the closing session of the third Annual General Meeting and Conference of the Local Government Service Association of Physical Planners (LoGSAPP) in Kumasi.
The two-day conference was on the theme: “Strengthening spatial planning for disaster risk prevention, reduction, climate change resilience and sustainable infrastructure delivery in Ghana”.
Prof Mensah said: “Physical planning is a technical area needed most in the LGS for national development planning”.
However, he added that the present staff strength of the physical planners at the various MMDAs remained woefully inadequate, saying that: “We are waiting for financial clearance for recruitment”.
Prof Mensah emphasised that some of the MMDAs, especially the Savannah Region, did not have even a physical planner, adding that: “In some cases you can get only one”.
He questioned “How can one physical planner ensure there is effective planning across about 270 communities within an Assembly. This is overwhelming and so we need to employ more”.
The conference was attended by government officials, state institutions, real estate developers, MMDAs, students, land management actors, among other stakeholders.
GNA
Edited by Dennis Peprah/Kenneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Christopher Tetteh – GNA
Email: [email protected]