KMA HOLDS TRAINING WORKSHOP ON SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY
The trainingworkshop was to provide consistent and high quality support for the development and operationalization of civil society – led Social Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (SPEFA) processes in the Metropolitan and MunicipalAssemblies.
It also aimed at building the knowledge and capacities of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Community Based Organizations and other Stakeholders to equip them to engage the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) and the Sub-district structures on Social Accountability issues.
In an address, read for him by Mr. ChristopherFosu,the Head of the Planning Unit, to welcome the participants Mr. Michael B Ataogye,and the Metro. Co-ordinating Director said the Government of Ghana in collaboration with the World Bank initiated the Social Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (SPEFA) which was aimed at providing capacity support to improve the accountability and effectiveness of basic service delivery in participatory Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies between 2012 and 2018.
The overall opinion was to improve citizen’s opinion on urban management and increase their engagement with MMDAs across the country.
He added that as part of the project activities the KMA engaged the services of AfaddansCompany Limited to conduct citizen’s satisfaction survey and to train the citizens on social accountability hence the training workshop.
He said, the new local government act 936, 2016,also empowers Assemblies to develop their respective areas of jurisdiction stressing that to effectively accomplish this arduous task there was the need to commit a lot of financial resources.
He added that the effectiveness of the MMDAs largely depended on the co-operation of its citizens and that the workshop sought to propel the Assembly in that direction.
He was,however, optimistic that the workshop would help improve the citizenry’s engagement with the assembly and their understanding on urban management and also enhancepublic participation in the governance processes.
The resource persons, Mr. Thomas Benarkun and Mr. Godwin Agyarko, both communication specialist, also educated the participants on how to understand the mechanisms of the Assembly and to evaluate the performanceof the local government authorities in the provision of capital development projects and to demand accountability and improved performance.