Government to utilise street-naming exercise to attract more investment

Street namingGovernment is to take advantage of the street-naming and property-numbering exercise to leverage the private sector to invest in services delivery at the local level.

Mr Akwasi Opong-Fosu, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, who made this known on Tuesday, said the exercise was expected to help the Government rake in internally generated revenue for the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to promote investment.

Speaking to journalists at the end of a stakeholders meeting organised by his Ministry in Accra, he said, the revenue stream from the local level was critical to assure the investors that they would be able to recoup their investment.

Mr Opong-Fosu said Government expected the private sector to invest in activities such as paving of roads in neighbourhoods, construction of modern markets and waste management services.

Though he admitted there would be challenges towards implementation of the project, he stressed that he was committed to meeting the 18-month deadline President John Dramani Mahama gave for the implementation of the project.

President Mahama on Thursday March 28, 2013 directed all MMDAs to implement the street addressing system in their respective jurisdiction within an 18-month period.

Mr Opong-Fosu expressesd dissatisfaction that different approaches had been adopted over the years for the management of data due to the absence of a national policy framework for naming streets and numbering properties.

He announced that a comprehensive National Policy Framework and Operational Guideline had been developed to guide the implementation of the addressing system.

Mr Opong-Fosu said the policy document aims at ensuring harmonisation, consistency, efficiency and standardisation of street addressing system in the various MMDAs.

Later during the day, six organisations signed a contribution agreement on Food Security and Environment Facility with the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.

Under the agreement, the organisations are expected to roll out projects aimed at assisting the country to achieve food security through environmentally sound agricultural development.

The total cost of the eight-year project which is funded by the Canada International Development Agency (CIDA) is GHȼ3.97 million.

The organisations that won the bid for the projects include Animal Research Institute, Nyankpala, Animal Research Institute, Accra, Basic Needs Limited, Water Research Institute, Zoomlion Ghana Limited, Wa and Ndaana Ghana Limited.

The Animal Research Institute is expected to introduce intensive small holder pig farming at the Lawra and Nandom Districts in the Upper West Region whiles the Animal Research Institute, Accra would aim at achieving food security and poverty reduction in the Karaga, Tolon, Talensi, Kasena-Nankana East, Lawra District and Wa Municipal areas in the Upper West Region.

Basic Needs Limited would roll out a poverty reduction project in the Talensi, Nabdam, Bulisa and the West Mamprusi Districts whiles Water Research Institute will implement cage fish culture and water conservation, reforestation of reservoirs projects in the Tolon and Bongo Districts in the Upper East Region.

Zoomlion Ghana Limited will implement fish farming in the Wa West and Nandom Districts in the Upper West Region while Ndaana Ghana Limited is expected to implement livelihood empowerment project in the Nadowli District in the Upper West Region.

Mr Opong-Fosu said “it is expected that by the end of this project in May 2016, there will be an increased use of not only innovative but also environmentally sound technologies and approaches in food security and sustainable agriculture within selected communities in the three Northern Regions”.

He expressed the hope that capacities of Ghanaian organisations to promote and deliver innovative food security and sustainable agriculture programming in the regions would be enhanced.

CIDA has contributed in diverse ways to enhance local governance and rural development.

In 2008, CIDA agreed to make a financial contribution of more than 14,300,000 dollars for the purpose of implementing the Food Security and Environment Facility project in the three Northern Regions.

The arrangement is expected to end in May 31, 2016.

Source: GNA

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