La Nkwantanang Assembly leverages technology to boost revenue
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the La Nkwantanang Madina Municipal Assembly (LANMA), Mrs Jennifer Dede Adjabeng, says the assembly is leveraging on technology to enhance the mobilisation of its internally generated revenue.
She said the assembly had digitised the collection of property rate and building operating permits to ensure that all taxes and levies were duly collected and accounted for.
Advertisement
She explained that the assembly had revalued and collected data on all properties within the municipality with the help of the Nation Builders Corps (NaBCo) personnel.
Improving revenue mobilisation
Mrs Adjabeng made this known at a “Meet the Press” session at the assembly to outline its achievements over the past two and a half years.
The engagement was in fulfilment of a directive issued by the government to all metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives to organise the “meet the press” in their assemblies to sensitise the people to the government’s programmes and projects.
The MCE used the opportunity to sensitise her constituents on the December 17 referendum.
Data collection
Mrs Adjabeng explained that with the software, the data on all properties and businesses in the municipality had been collected and updated and it prompted the assembly when the time was due for the owners to pay their taxes and levies.
She noted that the system, which was a Global Positioning System (GPS), enabled the assembly to track people who owed them either the business operating permit or property rate.
Per their data currently, she said levies and other taxes in arrears amounted to the tune of about GH¢3 million and they had given those who owed up to January 2020 to fulfil their obligation.
Other Trending Stories
She, therefore, urged the public to pay their dues to the assemblies while they demanded development.
Projects and programmes
On education, the MCE said the assembly had constructed a number of classroom blocks for some of the schools, including a six-unit block for the Kweiman Basic School, and also distributed 1,000 school desks to some schools.
On health, she mentioned that the assembly had constructed an Out Patient Department (OPD) block for the Kekele Polyclinic and provided an ambulance and equipment for the Recovery Ward of the Rawlings Circle Polyclinic.
To ensure good sanitation, she added that the assembly had subsidised the construction of 1,802 household toilets and 20 toilet facilities for public schools and health institutions.
Preventing flooding
In enforcing sanitation bye-laws, the MCE said a number of people had been arrested for dumping refuse at places they were not supposed to.
In its quest to prevent flooding in the municipality, Mrs Adjabeng indicated that various drainage systems and culverts had been constructed while some dredging exercises had been done on selected drains.
On the creation of jobs for the youth and the people, Mrs Adjabeng explained that some youth were undergoing skills training, while others had benefitted from the Planting for Food and Jobs and NaBCo.
Touching on the footbridges which were not being used by pedestrians, the MCE said the police were enforcing the law to arrest anybody who did not use them while crossing the roads and the assembly also continued to sensitise the public to the need to utilise them.