LOCAL GOVERNANCE IN GHANA

According to wikipedia.org,Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than the state.This term,local governance is used to differentiate it from offices at the nation-state level,which are referred to as the central government,national government or federal government (where appropriate)

 The introduction of the Local Governance Act in Ghana,has deepen democracy and given voices to the voiceless because; it allows decision to be made on local matters.This would improve community participation in decision making and enable various communities in Ghana to accept policies implemented by the Central Government.

After Ghana gained independence on the 6th of March,1957, successive governments have looked to a vibrant local government system to aid the country’s development. Attempts at decentralization were introduced, for instance, in 1983 under Rawlings’ military rule.Ghana’s current programme of decentralisation was initiated in 1988. The process of decentralisation continued and was endorsed by Ghana’s first multiparty government that came into power in 1992. 

The legal basis of Local government is in the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana,which provides that a District Assembly is the highest political authority in the district, and that the District Assembly has deliberative, legislative and executive powers. The Constitution prescribes that Ghana shall have a system of local government and administration which shall, as far as practicable, be decentralised. The composition, powers and duties of the different types of District Assemblies are prescribed in the Local Government Act of 1993.

In Africa, Ghana is not the only country practising the Local Governance system.

Local government traditionally enjoyed limited power in Egypt's highly centralised state. Under the central government were twenty-six governorates (sing., muhafazah; pl., muhafazat). These were subdivided into districts (sing., markaz; pl., marakaz) and villages (sing., qaryah; pl., qura) or towns. At each level, there was a governing structure that combined representative councils and government-appointed executive organs headed by governors, district officers, and mayors, respectively.
Governors were appointed by the president, and they, in turn, appointed subordinate executive officers. The coercive backbone of the state apparatus ran downward from the Ministry of Interior through the governors' executive organs to the district police station and the village headman (sing., umdah; pl., umadah).
This practise is not new in Ghana, it is the practise in most democratic countries. In Canada for instance, people elect their city Mayor (Mayors are equivalent to DCEs). In the United States even the County police sherrif is elected by the people 

WHAT DO YOU THINK?
I, strongly recommend the local Governance system in Ghana,as it gives more power to the local people to contribute to the growth and development of the nation.It  is also a great avenue to nurture young politicians to take up the mantle of leadership.Most importantly, the people that matter most are not left out in implementing policies that would go a long way to improve the economy.
As Democracy is said to be Government of the People,By the People and For the People.

DATA COLLECTION at MMDAs

 Why is effective data collection and storage functions important at your MMDAs?

Data collection is only useful if data are stored in a database that is easily accessible. When data are easily accessible, report writing can be improved and the analysis of issues in the dis­trict can be more holistic, taking into consideration indicators from various departments in the MMDA.

 Effective data management further optimizes the use of resources at the MMDA towards data collection, by avoiding the duplication of data collection activities, preventing the loss of valuable information through officer transfers, and maximizing the use of the data collected. 

Furthermore, having all the data both accessible and collated in a functional manner supports the allocation of resources to areas of greatest need and to strategic locations relative to existing resources.

What are the Benefits of Data Management?

So what do we derive, if we have an effective data management structure. The following are some of the benefits of data management

•   Transparent, consistent and repeatable decision making processes
•      A means of resolving community disagreements related to allocation of government resources
•      Allocation of limited resources to areas of greatest need. 
•       Use of data to support project/program proposals to development partners and GoG. 
•      Efficient knowledge transfer between MMDA officers.

·         Facilitation of reporting by making information readily available and accessible when needed.

Barriers to Data Management

 We would love to conclude this post on data management with some of the challenges faced in developing a data base management structure in an MMDA context. It is our  desire that you would  be able to brainstorm and solve some of the under listed challenges  as  they come up. Please send us your feedback as and when these challenges are overcomed. We would be delighted to read from you. Some  common barriers to data management are: 

1.     Unaware of what type of data is needed 
2.    Inadequate IT and analysis skills 
3.    Underutilisation of motivated individuals in the office
4.    Human resource constraints

DATA BASE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE

In our previous post, we discussed what data is and the distinction between data and information. This post shares with you what a database management structure is and goes further to explain the importance of data at the Metropolitan,Municipal and District Assembly Level.

If this is your first visit to this blog, you are Welcome.This is the Official Devt Plan Consult blog. 

Devt Plan consult amongst other services facilitates training and workshop programs for Metropolitan,Municipal and District Assemblies in Ghana in the area of Local Governance and Decentralization.

participants in a group discussion

We are sharing with you topics from a workshop we facilitated for the Obuasi Municipal Assembly on Database Development and Management. Hope you enjoy this post.

What is a Data Base Management Structure?

A  Data Base Management Structure DBMS is a system in which related data is stored in an ‘efficient’ and ‘compact’ manner. The word ‘Efficient’ means that the data stored in the DBMS is easily accessed in a timely manner. In the above definition the phrase “related data” implies the data stored in the DBMS are connected by a common topic (example: education in the district).

Importance of Data at the Metropolitan, Muncipal and District Assembly Level.

Why is there a need for the effective data collection and utilization at the MMDAs?

Data collection is vital because relevant data from the community level are used to inform MMDA planning and decision-making processes, and provide accountability and transparency to stakeholders (communities Government of Ghana, and Developing Partners).

At the MMDA level data is used in the following processes; 

• Every four years data are trended in the form of indicators to identify issues at the MMDA and develop the 4-year Medium Term Development Plan (MTDP)
•       Every year, MMDA activities, projects and programmes are defined on the basis of the MTDP to create the Annual Action Plan (AAP). Data are used to prioritize and select activities that target the issues and communities of greatest need. 
• The AAP is implemented and input, output and outcome data are gathered through monitoring activities. 
•   Data gathered through monitoring activities are evaluated to define improvements to plans, projects and programmes at the MMDAs.

 Love to Read from  You!

What have you learnt in reading this post? Do you have issues we need to clarify? Or a suggestion you would love to pass on? Please drop us your comment below. Join us in our next post as we share with you four roles data plays in supporting the functions of the MMDAs.

Workshop on Database Development and Management

 The implementation of the decentralization and local governance system by the Government of Ghana, has called for the need of effective utilization of data in order to allocate resources to places where it is most needed. Database Development and management has therefore become an integral part in every Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs ) in Ghana.

However, one challenge that faces most MMDAs is how to effectively utilize data in the provision of basic infrastructure such as quality water, hospitals and schools for the community. 

Realizing this challenge, the Obuasi Municipal Assembly contracted Devt Plan Consult to organize and facilitate a two- day workshop on Database Development and Management for the Key staff and heads of Departments of the Assembly.

This post gives an overview of workshop topics treated; we hope the content would be educative and informative. Don’t forget to provide us with your comments and feedbacks; we would love to read from you, especially from the Participants.

What was the Objective of the Workshop?

The workshop was organized to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to appreciate, maintain, and utilize data management systems at their departments for more efficient and effective service delivery. 

Group Picture with Participants

Is database Management so Critical at the MMDAs?

Most MMDAs do not give much attention to the data collected by the Assembly; hence they do not know where to channel resources for the provision of basic infrastructure. However, database management is more than just developing a tool, it goes beyond that. It is more of developing a  system that will enable the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to effectively manage data, because  a better data management will improve the Assemblies’ ability to plan, make decisions, monitor, report and disseminate information.

What this post seeks to achieve is to share with you some of the information on database developing and management we discussed with the Obuasi Assembly in our two day workshop.

 What is data?

It is important to distinguish between data and information as most people cannot differentiate between the two. Data are made of raw facts. Infor­mation is, however, data that have been processed and shaped in an immediately informative way.

For instance, when assessing the size of total education capitation grant payments required, you need to know the total enrolment. Thus, total enrollment is information for this scope. Again, to post trained teach­ers to where they are most needed, one needs to know where teacher shortages are. Teacher shortages are easily shown by high student-teacher ratios (STR), which compare enrollment and number of teachers – in this case the information needed is STR, and total enrolment is part of the data used to compute it.

The purpose of data and its collection therefore; is to obtain information to keep on record, to make decisions about important issues, to pass information on to others. Primarily, data is collected to provide information regarding a specific topic

What Next?

Join us in our next article as we share with you discussion on Data Base Management Structure and the importance of Data at Metropolitan, Municipal,and District Assembly level. If you need to contact Devt Plan Consult; give us a call on 024 4666458 / 024 4694634/026 6598157 or walk into our office located at Plot Number 8A Block IX, Asafo- Dadiesoaba, opposite the offices of the registrar general’s department, Kumasi. Alternatively, you can drop as a mail at info@devtplanconsult.org

devtplanconsult@yahoo.com

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