Regional Ministers want decouple budgets for Regional Coordinating Councils
Regional Ministers attending the fourth Regional Ministers Conference in Bolgatanga at the weekend issued a communiqué with a call on the government to bring to fruition the decoupling of the Regional Coordinating Councils (RCCs) budgets.
This, the conference said, would enable the RCCs to improve upon their coordination and monitoring functions in the regions.
It called on the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) to take steps, through the Chief of Staff, to provide RCCs with the resources including vehicles to facilitate monitoring.
The communiqué stressed the need for the MLGRD to actively involve Regional Ministers to continue to work in collaboration with Parliament and other stakeholders to initiate a framework to guide working relations between RMs and Members of Parliament (MPs) on one hand, MPs and MMDCEs on the other.
It called for mutual collaboration between MLGRD and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to be strengthened for the effective implementation of the fiscal aspects of the decentralization programme.
“The MLGRD should take steps through the Chief of Staff to provide RCCs with the needed resources including vehicles to facilitate monitoring activities.”
It advocated that teachers and health workers serving in rural areas should be given attractive incentive packages including the provision of residential accommodation.
The communiqué called on the government and stakeholders to look at retargeting and expanding the School Feeding Programme and aim at equity to reflect the pro-poor objective of linking the programme to rural food production.
It said all security agencies and patriotic citizens should coordinate well and arrest or report the smuggling of petroleum products, fertilizers and other farming inputs to neighbouring countries.
The communiqué stated “There must be more transparency in the disbursement of stool lands revenue and RCCs should be provided with time-outs returns.”
The Ministers congratulated President John Atta Mills for his overwhelming endorsement as the flag-bearer of the NDC in the 2012 elections and the Vice President on his endorsement as his running mate.
The Ministers lauded government for instituting appropriate steps to ensure transparency and the judicious use of the oil revenue and appealed to it to still be committed to improving other traditional sources of revenue.
It also commended the government for making strenuous efforts to improve road networks, the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), agriculture, education, and health among others.
The Communiqué also commended the government for providing motorbikes and vehicles to Assembly Members and MMDAs.
Source: GNA