Accra June 24. – A one-day seminar on “Decentralized Governance in the Accra Metropolitan Assembly” for Members of Parliament, administrators, traditional authorities and assemblymen in the city was held in Accra yesterday. The seminar, which aimed at finding solutions to numerous problems facing the city was organised by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and sponsored by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI). Mr Nat Nuno Amarteifio, Mayor of Accra, said the AMA has been trying for the past three years to implement the government’s decentralization policy without success and stressed the need for stakeholders in the city to come to its aid. He said the seminar will, therefore, find solutions that would ensure the co-ordinating of activities of the assembly and the central government agencies in the metropolitan area to make for effective governance. Mr Abdoulie Janneh, UNDP resident representative, in a speech read on his behalf, noted that Ghana has a credible local government system through which civic and traditional leaders and the private sector can adequately express the objectives of good governance. He hoped that the seminar would address issues on harmonization of national and local interests, transparency and involvement of traditional authorities to promote good governance. Miss Clara Hesse, Field Director of NDI, said her outfit is outlining a comprehensive programme to assist Parliament to co-ordinate activities of a research centre, political parties, non-governmental organisations and others active in government. Mr Mohseen Mososa , an MP from South Africa and Mr Theophilus Eisem, an MP from Namibia shared their countries decentralization programmes with participants.
