By
Alice Tettey, GNA
Cape Coast, Oct. 15, GNA – The Head of Local
Government Service, Dr Nana Ato Arthur has stressed that for the “Ghana Beyond
Aid” Agenda to become a national reality, the processes must start at the
district level.
To achieve this, there was the need for a
strong inter-service collaboration and cooperation to engender holistic
planning for effective and efficient service delivery at all institutional
levels to check financial and material resource leakages in the system.
Dr Nana Arthur was speaking at a day’s forum
on “Inter Service and Sectoral Collaboration and Co-operation System (ISCCS)”
in Cape Coast on Thursday for Heads of Department, Coordinating Directors of
the Metropolitan, Municipal and Districts (MMDAs), Ministries, Departments and
Agencies (MDAs) and Public Corporations.
He explained that the country’s
decentralization policy was instituted purposely for effective delivery of
services to the citizenry, however, some issues of overlaps, duplication as
well as conflicts in functions, planning and implementation of projects and
programmes occur among some institutions both at the Regional and district
levels.
This, to him was hampering development and
growth and therefore, the ISCCS, which is incorporated in ACT 2003 (656) and
amended into Local Service Act, 2016 (ACT 936), Section 63, 4c, was to ensure
the harmonization of local government programmes among others to avoid
duplication.
“The resolution of such issues to ensure
effective service delivery requires an effective inter-service and sectoral
collaboration and cooperation mechanism,” he added.
Dr Nana Arthur said such a mechanism among
institutions and services in the decentralization programme would aid unity of
efforts, foster common understanding on development issues, provide common
platform for work and enhance the achievement of common objectives for
integrated service delivery.
It was for this reason that his office was
sensitizing all stakeholders for the implementation of the ISCCS to ensure
Sectoral collaboration and cooperation for enhanced holistic planning, reduced
institutional conflicts, ensure judicial use of resources and improve
participation, transparency and accountability in service delivery.
This will also ensure improved local economy,
poverty reduction, employment generation, enhanced social cohesion, gender
mainstreaming and environmental conditions for the Ghana Beyond Aid Agenda to
be realised.
Dr Esther Offei Aboagye, a Consultant, bemoaned
the “perception of competition” among some leadership of the public sector,
which was breeding unnecessary confusion and called for a “considerable scope
of collaboration and networking for enhanced performance”.
She indicated that inter-institutional
engagement and communication on related issues must be facilitated, whilst
responses to questions that may arise during public discourses be harmonised to
avoid officers giving out conflicting statements on matters of public interest.
Furthermore team-work must be strengthened at
the Regional and District levels, whereby it will be possible to share
resources and services such as conference rooms, vehicles and other facilities
to save cost.
Dr Offei Aboagye urged all stakeholders to
work in tandem to ensure that the implementation of the ISCCS become a success
story.
Mr Kingsley Adei Boahen, Chief Director of the
Central Regional Coordinating Council, called on policy makers as well as all
stakeholders to synchronise their activities for a better performance.
GNA