In a letter addressed to President Akufo-Addo, dated Monday, July 10, 2023, the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Dan Botwe, expressed strong concerns about the lack of cooperation from the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund, Irene Naa Torshie Addo-Lartey.
The Minister highlighted that this lack of collaboration hindered the equitable disbursement of District Common Funds in a manner that would best serve the government’s interests.
Mr. Botwe emphasized that during his tenure of two years and three months in the Ministry, efforts to align with the Office of the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund in strategically determining the beneficiary Districts for fund allocations had not yielded positive results.
“It is instructive for His Excellency to note that this Ministry has not had the expected level of cooperation from the Office of the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund.
“In the past two years and three months since I have been in the Ministry, efforts to get the Office of the Administrator of District Assemblies Common Fund to align with the Ministry in the strategic determination of the beneficiary Districts of such allocations have not been successful,” an unhappy Minister Botwe, noted in his letter to the President, dated Monday, July 10, 2023.
He continued: “Even more worrying is the fact that as the Ministry responsible for the MMDAs we are not involved, engaged or consulted in any form by the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund in the development of the formula proposed to Parliament.
“We are of the view that, government would be more efficient in the utilization of such resources if we align the decision making process with all relevant stakeholders,” he added.
He conveyed his dissatisfaction in the letter, stating that the Ministry responsible for the Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) was not involved, engaged, or consulted in any way in the development of the proposed formula submitted to Parliament.
According to Mr. Botwe, by law, his Ministry has the mandate to provide a coordinating and supervisory role over the activities of the MMDAs and to guide their development initiatives.
Therefore, he argued that the authority to determine which Districts receive financial support and special attention should rest with the Ministry to ensure alignment with the broader government strategy.
The Minister firmly believed that the distribution trigger should be initiated by the Ministry on behalf of the government to ensure it aligns well with the overall government objectives.
Currently, the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund proposes the formula for distribution annually to the Parliament of Ghana. Once the approval is granted, the Administrator has the responsibility under section 129 of the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936) to administer and distribute the funds among the District Assemblies based on the approved formula.
In conclusion, the Minister’s letter conveyed the urgency of addressing the lack of cooperation and ensuring the involvement of all relevant stakeholders, including the Ministry, to enhance the efficient utilization of resources for the benefit of the government and the country.