As government prepares to allocate GH¢25 million to each of Ghana’s 261 Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in 2025 under its decentralisation and 24-hour economy plan, a governance expert has urged a sharper focus on economic infrastructure that drives local development.
In an interview with The High Street Journal, Dr. Richard Abankwa Agyepong, Senior Lecturer at the University of Education, Winneba, cautioned that the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) should not be treated as a general pool for administrative costs or scattered initiatives.
He recommended that assemblies preserve their Internally Generated Funds (IGF) for basic services like sanitation and education, while dedicating the DACF strictly to strategic infrastructure such as markets, post-harvest facilities, and enterprise zones.
“The common fund should go into things like markets, post-harvest facilities, or local enterprise zones, these are the kinds of investments that will support local economies in the long term, particularly for our informal and farming sectors.” Dr. Agyepong said.
Dr. Agyepong stressed that channelling funds into such projects could significantly reduce post-harvest losses, boost farmer incomes, and create jobs through agro-processing and small-scale manufacturing. He warned that previous disbursements had often been diluted across non-strategic initiatives, producing little lasting impact.
“The GH¢25 million, if well-targeted, can transform local economies. But without discipline and a clear focus, the opportunity will be wasted,” he noted.
To safeguard the fund’s impact, Dr. Agyepong called for stronger accountability and transparent auditing of how districts use the money.
“We hardly see the results of the little IGF that assemblies collect. This is a chance to change that,” he added.
With expectations high, Dr. Agyepong believes how MMDAs plan and execute this funding will determine whether Ghana’s decentralisation ambitions translate into real grassroots growth or simply repeat the mistakes of the past.
