Afigya Kwabre to solve accommodation problems
The Afigya Kwabre District in the Ashanti Region operates from a rented apartment, leading to a drain on its coffers and stalling many development projects.
Advertisement
Currently, the assembly is housed on a rooftop of a filling station at Kodie, and the District Chief Executive (DCE), the district co-ordinating director, the district directors for education, health and other directors of the decentralised departments live in rented apartments.
The district was created in 2008 and has become one of the distressed assemblies, which has not been given its GH¢1-million seed money for its proper take-off.
The other struggling assemblies include Bosome Freho, Kumawu-Sekyere Afram Plains, Offinso North, Sekyere Central and Atwima Kwanwoma.
In spite of the challenge, the Afigya Kwabre District, under the initiative of the DCE, Mr Kaakyire Oppong Kyekye, is partnering a number of international organisations to meet the basic needs of the people and to solve the accommodation problems.
Mini-city-state
The construction of what the assembly calls a mini-city-state made up of office facilities, an assembly hall for the district, workers flats, residential accommodation for the DCE and all his directors is about 40 per cent complete to solve the problem permanently.
According to the plan, which was shown to the Daily Graphic last Friday, the ‘city’ would also have a CCTV camera and basic necessities of life to complement and facilitate the work of the assembly.
Mr Oppong Kyekyeku said plans were afoot to move into the facility by the end of the year.
Other Trending Stories
The district, with two main constituencies, Afigya Kwabre North and South, is the fifth most populous in the region as per the 2010 census.
The district has made giant strides renovating 44 educational institutions, including three SHSs, constructed roads, built toilets and drilled a number of boreholes. Most of the communities have been hooked onto the national grid.
Homecoming
The district, in collaboration with the Centre for National Culture, is organising the third homecoming dubbed: Effie Ne Fie, at which all the sons and daughters of the district will converge to share ideas on how to develop the area.
Appeal
The DCE said the work of the MMDCEs was such that by the time they familiarised themselves with the main task and acquainted themselves with the nitty-gritty of their job, four years would have expired.
The frequent changes of MMDCEs affected government projects and impoverished the people, he said.
He also appealed to the Common Fund Secretariat to educate all MMDCEs on the criteria used in determining how much money a district could benefit from.