SEMINAR TO EMPOWER ASSEMBLY MEMBERS ENDS (PAGE 14)

A ONE-DAY seminar to educate assembly members in the West Akyem Municipality on their responsibilities to the communities has ended at Asamankese, the municipal capital.
The seminar, which was organised by Sunkwa Foundation, a community-based organisation with funding from the German Development Service (DVD), took the assembly members through four topics, namely Local Government: The Role and Responsibilities of the Assembly Member, Conflict Resolution and Management, Planning Process, Revenue Generation and Mobilisation.
In an address, the Executive Director of the foundation, Mr Ansah Adjei, said it had become necessary to upgrade the knowledge of the assembly members to enable them to discharge their duties dispassionately.
Mr Ansah, who was an immediate past assembly member in the municipality, stated that since society had become dynamic and so many changes were taking place each passing day due to technological advancement, it had become necessary to educate assembly members to cope with the rapid changes in all aspects of life since they were the mouthpieces of their respective communities.
He expressed the hope that with such training, they would be able to better serve their communities to improve the lives of the people.
The West Akyem Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Seth Otchere who also addressed the participants, expressed the hope that the training would make the assembly members live up to their responsibilities, especially in areas such as conflict resolution and revenue mobilisation.
In another development, the Akuapem North District Chief Executive (DCE), Mr George Opare Addo, had assured the people in the district that the assembly would complete all ongoing projects and programmes initiated by the previous administration.
Addressing a special meeting of the assembly at Akropong at the weekend, Mr Opare Addo said the assembly had decided to complete such projects and programmes since they were selected based on the needs and aspiration of the people in the communities.
He cited some donor-funded projects like three-unit classroom blocks with offices and KVIP places of convenience for the Methodist JSS, the Anglican School and the District Assembly Primary School, all at Akropong, the district capital, as well as similar school blocks with the relevant facilities for the Methodist JSS and the Roman Catholic School at Larteh.
Other projects, he said, included a three-unit classroom block with an attached office and KVIP place of convenience for the Mampong Presbyterian Primary School, boreholes for villages such as Krobo Nkwanta, Baanu Ye, Ntiamoah, Miawani, Apirede Nkwanta and Duasin.
The DCE who told the gathering that every community would be provided with a social amenity, said the new offices being constructed for the assembly would also be given priority.
On health, he said the district’s mutual health insurance scheme had so far registered 70,976 persons, representing 67.76 per cent of the population with the total premium standing at GH¢82,250,40, while GH¢573,550.79 out of the claims totalling GH¢292,991.17 had been settled.
Mr Opare Addo further told the assembly members that efforts were being made to control HIV/AIDS and improve agriculture, education and tourism. He, therefore, solicited the support of the assembly members for the successful implementation of the initiatives.