Techiman (B/A), Nov. 28, – The
Techiman Municipal Assembly is to establish a cashew processing factory to add
value to raw cashew for export , Mr. Ebenezer Amoah, the Municipal Planning
Officer said on Monday.
He said the Assembly had
prioritised and captured the One-District-One-Factory (1D1F) project in its
medium term development plan, and added that it had sent a proposal to the
government to that effect.
Speaking at an accountability
forum at Techiman in the Brong-Ahafo Region, Mr. Amoah said the Assembly
believed the 1D1F and the Planting for Food and Jobs programmes remained the
surest way to create jobs for the youth and also reduce poverty.
The forum was organized by the
Centre of Posterity Interest Organization (COPIO), an NGO with support from the
Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) and Open Society Initiative for West
Africa (OSIWA), international NGOs and attended by heads of departments,
farmers, traders, assembly members and other stakeholders.
It was in line with a project
being implemented by COPIO with support from GACC and OSIWA and aimed at
strengthening accountability and transparency in the utilisation of public
resources at the local level through active citizenship participation for
enhanced service delivery and development.
The forum also offered
opportunity for the general public to demand accountability from duty-bearers.
Mr. Amoah said the Assembly had
also nursed thousands of cashew seedlings to be supplied to farmers engaged in
the Planting for Food and Jobs programme.
He said the seedlings would
enable the farmers to produce enough raw materials to feed the factory.
Besides, Mr. Amoah added that the
Assembly’s medium term development plan had captured in its budget
mechanization of boreholes, construction of toilets, paving of Nana Abena
Market and extension of electricity to unserved areas in the Municipality.
Other prioritised projects
include construction of additional Community-based Health and Planning Services
(CHPS) Compounds, organisation of mock examinations, malaria control and
HIV/AIDS campaigns.
Mr. Amoah said works on the
construction of a dumping site at Fiaso was progressing steadily, adding that
very soon the Assembly would construct modern nurses and midwives quarters in
the Municipality.
He observed that strayed animals
were causing nuisance in the Municipality, saying the Assembly intended to
embark on an exercise to arrest all such animals.
Mr. Elijah Mawutor, an Assistant
Director in charge of Personnel at the Assembly, said citizens’ participation
in deepening public accountability could not be over-emphasized.
He said the Assembly frowned on
corruption and appealed to the people to partner with the Assembly to expose
corrupt officials to help fight the canker.
Mr. Mustapha Yeboah, the
Executive Director of COPIO, commended the GACC and OSIWA for their commitment
in helping to promote accountability and fight corruption in the country.
He said the project was yielding
positive outcomes as its implementation had helped in deepening the local
governance system in the Municipality.
Mr. Yeboah said the project had
established Local Accountability Networks (LANets) which were currently
monitoring execution of educational and health projects in the area.
In an open forum, Mrs. Siata
Kusi, the Assemblywoman for Akisimasu Electoral Area appealed to the Assembly
to provide ICT facilities to deprived schools in her area.
She also appealed for extension
of the school feeding programme to some schools in the electoral area.
Mr. Zakari Mohammed, the Assemblyman
for Tanoso-Ahenfi Electoral Area, said some newly developed areas in the
electoral area lacked potable drinking water and appealed to the Assembly to
extend water to those areas.
Mr. Kwaku Acheampong, the
Assemblyman for Korfoso, also called on the Assembly to extend streetlights to
some of the satellite communities to improve security.
Many of the Assembly members also
expressed concern about the deplorable nature of some boreholes which needed
urgent rehabilitation works.
GNA
No comments:
Post a Comment