By
Florence Afriyie Mensah, GNA
Tepa (Ash), Sept. 14, GNA – Government has
been reminded to step up its efforts at providing infrastructure and other
basic amenities in cocoa growing communities to ensure higher and sustained
cocoa production levels in Ghana.
Mr. Ewald Garr, the Programmes Leader of Civic
Empowerment for Community Action at the Institute of Democratic Governance
(IDEG), gave the advice at Tepa, in the Ahafo-Ano North Municipality, where
IDEG and its subsidiary, Governance Issues Forum Network (GIFNET), is
partnering Mondelez Cocoa Life Programme, to facilitate a cocoa monitoring
exercise in some cocoa growing areas in the Municipality.
He expressed concern about the deplorable
state of infrastructure and basic amenities in the cocoa communities, adding
that, government must fix the basic infrastructure and their needs if the cocoa
industry, the leading economic mainstay in the country, is to be sustained.
The project, which aims at creating and
empowering thriving cocoa communities to increase and sustain higher coca
production levels in the Country, and its being implemented in five districts
across the country – Ahafo Ano North, Awutu Senya, Bia West, Juaboso, and Sekyere
East.
The collaborative monitoring team, together
with other local government staff of the Municipality, toured the communities.
Communities visited included Manfo, Odikro
Nkwanta, Katapei, Gyamerakrom, Nyamedewoasie, Subriso and Nkyesendanho.
The team inspected progress of work on some
on-going government projects, among which, were classroom blocks, CHPS
compound, boreholes and mobile network extension.
Mr. Garr expressed worry about the deplorable
state of basic social and economic infrastructure and also the poor quality of
work being done by contractors of these on-going projects.
He commended the Assembly for their hard work
and urged that they ensure strict monitoring of these projects.
Mr. Benjamin Opoku Busia, the Planning Officer
for the Municipality, described the exercise as very useful and pledged that
they were going to ensure monitoring for quality work, and urged communities
already with such amenities to put them to good use.
Some community members at Gyamerakrom, led by
Mr. Akwasi Adusei, pleaded with the Assembly to monitor the work of the
contractors to avoid shoddy work.
He said such monitoring would ensure that the
nation’s resources invested in development projects do not go waste.
The Governance Issues Forum Network (GIFNet)
is a non-political organization, which is sponsored by IDEG and creates a
platform for the grassroots, to influence policies that affect them through
dialogue.
GNA