The
Minister
of
Local
Government,
Decentralisation
and
Rural
Development,
Martin-Adjei
Mensah
Korsah,
has
called
on
Metropolitan,
Municipal
and
District
Chief
Executives
(MMDCEs)
to
take
ownership
of
the
many
government
policies
to
develop
their
spaces.
According
to
Mr
Korsah,
government
had
over
the
years
introduced
a
myriad
of
policies
to
support
the
growing
urbanisation
the
country
was
witnessing
and
stakeholders
must
support
the
efforts
to
make
urban
centres
resilient
to
human
habitation.
Speaking
at
the
opening
session
of
the
Ghana
Urban
Forum
in
Accra
yesterday,
the
Techiman
South
MP
said
the
importance
of
Metropolitan,
Municipal
and
District
Assemblies
to
the
holistic
development
of
the
country
cannot
be
underestimated.
“As
a
ministry
responsible
for
coordinating
the
implementation
of
urban
development
policies,
we
wish
to
entreat
stakeholders
to
take
ownership
of
policies
focused
on
urban
development
to
effect
the
needed
change
and
transform
our
urban
areas,”
he
said.
He
said
“As
per
Section
12
of
the
Local
Governance
Act,
2016
(Act
936),
I
wish
to
entreat
Metropolitan,
Municipal
and
District
Assemblies
to
champion
the
urban
development
agenda
within
their
jurisdiction.
Urbanisation
presents
a
lot
of
opportunities
that
has
the
potential
to
change
the
face
of
our
development.”
Some
of
the
policies
he
itemised
include
the
Ghana
Urban
Management
Pilot
Programme,
the
Local
Government
Capacity
Support
Programme
and
its
successor
the
Ghana
Secondary
Cities
Support
Programme
and
the
Ghana
Urban
Mobility
and
Accessibility
Project.
The
rest
are
the
Greater
Accra
Resilient
Development
Project
and
Participatory
Slum
Upgrading
Project,
the
Tamale
Urban
Resilient
Project,
and
the
Sustainable
Cities
Project
–
Phase
one.
The
resultant
effect
of
these
interventions,
he
said,
encompassed
increased
revenue
generation,
solid
waste
management,
local
economic
development,
improved
mobility
and
accessibility,
improved
slum
conditions,
improved
infrastructure
and
service
delivery
and
ultimately
improved
living
conditions.
He
reiterated
the
government’s
commitment
to
holistic
urban
development
to
address
the
issues
affecting
urban
centres
as
a
result
of
rural-urban
migration.
The
United
Nations
Resident
Coordinator
for
Ghana,
Dr
Charles
Abani,
said
the
need
to
address
urbanisation
was
important
because
it
encompassed
everything
including
addressing
crime.
As
government
seeks
to
address
the
challenges
associated
with
urbanisation,
Dr
Abani
said
it
must
consider
vulnerable
groups
in
its
policies
because
“the
future
is
undeniably
urban
and
we
must
prepare
and
not
taken
by
surprise”.
A
Senior
Urban
Specialist
at
World
Bank
Ghana,
Catherine
Lynch,
on
her
part
said
Ghana
must
focus
on
resilience
in
the
face
of
climate
change,
efficient
in
land
management
and
close
the
service
delivery
gap
between
the
poor
and
the
rich.
The
forum,
on
the
theme
“Nurturing
roots,
growing
futures:
Combining
policies
and
partnerships
for
urban
resilience
and
transformation”
is
an
inclusive
platform
that
bring
together
multi-stakeholders
to
deliberate
on
important
urban
development
and
management
issues
and
to
share
common
vision
for
sustainable
urban
development.
It
brought
together
stakeholders
from
ministries,
departments,
agencies,
non-governmental
organisations,
civil
society
organisations,
private
sector,
development
partners
and
traditional
authorities.