Tamale, Dec 24, GNA – Alhaji Shani Alhassan Saibu, Northern Regional Minister, has advised Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to develop spatial plans for their areas.
Spatial planning tries to coordinate and improve the impacts of other sectoral policies on land use to achieve a more even distribution of economic development within a given territory than would otherwise be created by market forces.
Alhaji Saibu made the call when he addressed the final meeting of the Heads of the Department of the Northern Region held at the Regional Coordinating Council in Tamale on Thursday.
The Northern Regional Minister entreated the Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority (LUPSA) to work with Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to help them develop the spatial plans.
He said this would not only help in generating the needed revenues for the MMDAs but would also ensure orderly development in the areas.
He urged MMDAs in the region to collaborate with LUSPA to ensure the success of the exercise to boost development in their areas.
The meeting, attended by Municipal, and District Chief Executives, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Coordinating Directors, representatives of the Regional House of Chiefs and Departmental Heads, discussed issues concerning education and spatial planning.
It was revealed that most of the 16 MMDAs in the region did not have physical planning officers, and many of them also did not have at least local plans to guide their development.
Alhaji Saibu said MMDAs should see physical planning as a way of raising revenue hence the need for them to take it seriously to augment other revenue streams available to them.
He also assured that the Regional Coordinating Council would intensify monitoring and evaluation of projects under execution to ensure that they were well executed for the benefit of the people.
He urged all duty-bearers to have the interest of the people at heart and work towards alleviating their challenges.
Alhaji Zikiru Sulley Shittu, Northern Regional Director of LUSPA, who made a presentation on physical planning requirements, expressed the need for the MMDAs to have at least local plans to ensure orderly development within their jurisdictions.
The LUPSA is a service delivery agency under the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), responsible for ensuring the sustainable development of land and human settlements through a decentralized planning system.
It exists to ensure judicious use of land and create an enabling environment for District Assemblies to better perform the spatial planning and human settlement management functions.
In addition to the Head office in Accra, the LUPSA has offices in all 16 regions and operates at the National, Regional and District levels.
GNA