Administration

Institutional and Administrative Arrangements

The Assembly through the Local Government Act 1993 462 (section 10 sub sections 1,2,3,4 and 5), carries out the legislative, deliberative and executive functions of Government.

These functions are summarized as follows:

• Provision of a sound sanitary and healthy environment;
• Provision of educational infrastructure for first and second cycle schools;
• Provision of markets and lorry parks within the Metropolis;
• The planning and development control of all infrastructure within Accra;
• Activities bordering on the maintenance of peace and security within the Metropolis;
• Provision of public safety and comfort;
  
  

General functions are also reflected in the detailed 86 functions outlined in the second schedule of L.I. 1865, 2007 which establishes the Ledzokuku Municipal Assembly.

The Assembly is also made up of Twelve Assembly Members out of which two are women. Eight of the Assembly Members are also elected while the remaining four are Government Employees.

The elected Assembly members are from eight electoral areas from Teshie and Nungua. Brekese, Klowekoo, Nii Odai Amrarlo and Nii Larweh make up the electoral areas from Krowor Constituency (Nungua) while Nii Ashitey Akomfra,Tsui Bleoo, Akromadeokpoo and Sangordjor are the electoral areas from Ledzokuku Constituency (Teshie).

Departments and Units of the Assembly

Within the First Schedule of Local Government Act 1993 462, the Municipality has 13 Departments to assist her to perform its functions as shown in the organogram below

General Administration

The Administration Department of Ledzokuku Municipal is the co-ordinating centre of all The Departments of the Assembly. It incorporates the Office of the Metropolitan Chief Executive.

The functions of the Central Administration Department include the following:

• Assists the Metro C-coordinating Director to co-ordinate the activities of the Assembly’s Departments and to implement the Assembly’s decisions and government policies at large.
• Provides Secretarial Services to the Metro Chief Executive.
• Organises meetings of the General Assembly, Metro. Authority, Committees and Sub-Committees.
• Keeps records of all correspondence of the Assembly
• Registers both Ordinance and Customary Marriages.
• Manages the Assembly’s fleet of vehicles, plants and equipment.
• Co-ordinates employees’ development (Training) Programmes and activities.
  
  

Offers unconditional customer care services to the Assembly’s general Rate Paying public and residents of the Municipality as well as other persons who may call for assistance.

The Finance Department

The Finance Department is one of the thirteen departments established under Act 462 first schedule for the Municipal Assemblies and is composed of the following units; Treasurer’s Secretariat, Prosecution, Accounting Unit, Collection, Monitoring Unit, Research Unit, Rating Unit, Traffic and Parking ,Vehicle Permit , Stores.

The Finance Department is charged with the following responsibilities:

Collection of revenue; it takes custody of all monies, Processing and payment of expenses incurred by the Assembly, Recording of revenue and expenditure into their respective books, Submission of monthly and annual financial statement to Management, Payroll Processing, To advise on financial matters, Research into changing trends of the market, Collection of permits from taxis, trotros and other commercial vehicles and Co-ordination of effective revenue collection from the markets.

Municipal Public Health Department

The Department of Public Health of the Ledzokuku Municipality was set up to promote and safeguard public health. It is involved in assessing, connecting and preventing those factors in the environment that can potentially affect adversely the health of present and future generations. These environmental factors may be physical, biological, social or psycho-social. The department thus represents the watching of all the services required to promote an environment that will allow residents to thrive well physically, mentally and socially.

The remaining responsibilities of the Department, classified as special duties, are headed as follows:

Environmental and Health Promotion Unit, Food, Water, Drugs safety and Hygiene Unit and Environmental Protection and Management Unit. Other supporting staffs include personnel for Accounts, Administration, Stores, Day Care Centers, and Artisans / Labourers.

The functions and the responsibilities can be summarized as follows:

Food Hygiene and Market Sanitation, Disease, Vector and Pest Control, Environmental Health Education,
Premises Inspection for control of environmental health hazards, Enforcement of Sanitation Bye-Laws of the Assembly, Control of Cemeteries, Health safety of keeping of animals and Building Sanitation.

Internal Audit Department

The fundamental objective of Ledzokuku Municipal is to provide essential utility services in terms of sanitation and others to residents of the Metropolis. To achieve this goal, there is therefore the need for vigorous mobilisation of funds from various sources and to ensure judicious use of these funds to the benefit of the people Functions of the Unit therefore include Revenue-Audit, Pre-audit of Expenditure, Verification of Assets and other items of the Assembly, Cases of Investigation referred to the Department by the Management, Personal audit to check physical existence of staff, Field verification to project sites to ensure physical existence of structures, In-Service Training of Staff and Personnel audit to ensure that salaries are paid to deserving staff.

Municipal Planning Co-ordinating Unit

The new Local Government Act 1993 (Act 462) section 46(3) established for each Assembly a District Planning Coordinating Unit (DPCU). The MPCU or the Municipal Planning Coordinating Unit (MPCU) is to serve as a Secretariat to the Municipal Planning Authority and to advise on planning, programming, monitoring, evaluation and coordination of development plans, policies, programmes and projects within the Municipality.

The functions of the MPCU are as follows: Collection and preliminary analysis of data, Preliminary rationalization and harmonization of development policies , Implementation of strategies and programmes and the preparation of projects documentation , Identification of bankable projects, assessment of the economic viability of projects and provision of guidance for their implementation, Direction and management of the integrated development planning process and the coordination of the implementation policies, programmes and projects by sectoral departments, Assist in the preparation of a comprehensive, integrated, perspective plans (medium -term plans, annual action plans) the development budget, and the identification of subject areas for technical details of the plan targets, Monitoring and evaluating the implementation of plans of various sector agencies and ensuring the achievement of plan targets as well as Co-ordination of donor funded development projects.

Waste Management Department

The Waste Management Department is responsible for keeping the Municipality environmentally healthy and sound.

Functions of the Department include: Liquid and solid waste disposal, Cleansing of streets and drains, public open places, and weeding of grass on road sides and open public places, The Department supervises and monitors the activities of private contractors engaged by the Assembly in solid and liquid waste management and engaged in the education of the public on waste management and the provision of sanitation facilities in homes.

Department of Food & Agriculture

In line with the Government’s policy on decentralization, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture was restructured by developing extension activities to the district level to facilitate grass root participation in the implementation of agricultural policies and programmes.

The decentralization programme took effect from the 15th of October, 1997 with the merger of the following departments – Veterinary Services Department, Crops Department, Extension, Fisheries, Animal Production, Plant Protection and Regulatory Services & Agricultural Engineering all coming under one umbrella as District Agricultural Development Unit (DADU).

The DADU is directly under the Municipal Assembly, to be headed by the Municipal Director of Food and Agriculture. Functions of the Department is to promote and provide efficient technical services, technologies and measures that will diversify Food and Agricultural Production for domestic and export markets in an environmentally sustainable manner, Prepare annual Municipal Agricultural work programmes and budget for submission to the District Assembly with copy to the Regional Director of Agriculture.

Other duties include:

• Management and coordination of the day- to- day activities of the District Agricultural Development Unit (DADU) including the analysis of participation and adoption rates of appropriate technologies of farmers.
  
• Participation in Monthly training sessions with Small and Medium Scale Enterprise and Bi-Monthly Technology Review meeting (BMTRM) with Research and SMS.

• Designing, in collaboration with the Regional Director, and implement a staff development programme for all categories of staff in the Municipality
  
  
• Liaising with all partners, (e.g. Farmers, Research, SMS, NGOs, educational institutions etc.) on programmes related to the development of Agriculture in the Municipality.
  
  
• Organising and participating in all meetings, conferences, workshops, etc. related to agriculture with a view to clarifying MOFA policies to all concerned.
  
  
• Monitoring the performance of all Agricultural Developments in the Municipality and their impact. Prepare and submit regularly, monthly, quarterly and annual reports to the Regional Director of Food and Agriculture and the Municipal Coordinating Director on the performance of agriculture in the Municipality as well as providing special situation reports.

Roads Department

The Municipal Roads Department is responsible for the maintenance of roads network in the Metropolis, drains and providing roads signs at appropriate locations. The Department also supervises any road cuttings and diversions to ensure that proper traffic flow is attained.

Municipal Works Department

The Municipal Works Department is one of the Departments established under Act 462 (first schedule) for the Municipal Assemblies. The Department performs its functions by relating with all thirteen (13) Departments, especially Waste Management, Roads Department, Town and Country Planning, Education and Finance.. The Department is responsible for the development and maintenance of first cycle schools, markets, sanitary structures, management of Assembly’s landed properties, design and management of all building projects of the Assembly, as well as premises/house numbering, development of street furniture and all Structures on Terminals (Lorry Parks).

The Department also renders other services to the general public such as building permit delivery, certification of true copy of approved building plans and identification and ownership of building. Municipal Works Department also demolishes unauthorized developments as well as dangerous and ruinous buildings.

Budget and Rating Department

The Department is to establish (in conjunction with the Municipal Planning Coordinating Unit and revenue generating Departments / Units /District Councils) an effective revenue base and to improve on it periodically, plan and determine the levels of financial resources as well as to ensure prudent and judicious use of the Assembly’s resources.

The Department has three Units namely: Statistics and Data Unit, Fees, Rates and Estimates Unit, and Monitoring and Evaluation Unit. These Units are further structured into sections as follows: Statistics and Data unit comprises the statistical Analysis and Data collection and Assessment sections. The Fees, Rates and Estimates Unit is divided into Rating and Estimates Computation Section. The Monitoring and Evaluation Unit is made up of projects and budgetary control sections.

Preparation of Fee-Fixing and Rate Imposition Resolutions, Preparation and Monitoring of Annual Budgets, Preparation of Nominal Rolls for wage and Salary Administration, Improvement of Revenue Data Base, Assistance in the creation and maintenance of an effective system of revenue mobilisation, and Physical monitoring of Projects and evaluation of expenditure on such projects.

Public Relations Department

Effective Communication is central to government. The Ledzokuku Municipality and its agencies continually need to get information and messages across to the public and the media. The Public Relations Department is to help the Chief Executive and other heads of Departments to do so in an efficient and cost effective way. The Unit performs functions in the following areas: Revenue Mobilization Campaign, Press Conferences, Public Education, Statements and interviews, Marketing, Sponsorship, Seminars, Speech Writing, Public Enquiry, Provision of Technical facilities i.e. Video Coverage, Photographs, Protocol Duties, Exhibitions, Publicity and Research.

Town and Country Planning Department

The Town and Country Planning Department is one of the decentralized departments and has been integrated into the Assembly. The activities of the Department are currently organized under seven sections namely: General Planning Administration, Development and Redevelopment Planning, Development Control, Land Surveying, Research, Public Education.

Specific roles of the Department include:

• Collection, collating and analysis of data on the natural and human resources of the Municipality, and the production of reports thereon.
  
  
• Identification of resources and potentials for commercial, industrial, housing, transport and other development and designing appropriate programme of action to tap them.
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  Coordination of diverse types of uses and developments of land promoted by various departments and agencies of Government and private developers to facilitate the achievement of the highest possible means of health efficiency and order in the physical environment.
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  Preparation of Detailed Planning Schemes in conformity with the Municipal Structure Plan; provision of detailed design of sub urban centres in the Municipality and other areas.
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  The Department is also the Secretariat of the Accra Metropolitan Planning Committee.

Department of Community Development

The Department of Community Development, which was established in 1948 is charged with the responsibility to promote and develop the deprived rural and urban communities. It performs statutory activities which are as follows: Community animation/Public Education , Promotion of Community participation through group dynamics and formation etc, Adult functional literacy and Education through the organization of literacy groups, training of facilitators and family life education, technical services which involves the mobilization of community resources and provision of technical advice for self-help constructional works e.g. KVIP, School building etc, Youth skills transfer programme. This involves the provision of employable skills to the youth.

Department Of Social Welfare

The Department of Social Welfare is a department within the Ministry of Manpower Development, Youth and Employment. It is one of the decentralised departments and operates three main programmes namely:-

1. Child’s Rights and Protection (C.R.P.), 2. Justice Administration (J.A.) and 3. Community Care (C.C.). These three core programmes are however inter-related.

Municipal Education Department

The Education Department is one of the decentralized departments of the Municipality Assembly with the responsibility of promoting education in both public and private schools at the pre-tertiary level. The Directorate is made up of a central office (i.e.) Municipal Education Office, headed by the Municipal Director and Two Zonal Councils (Teshie and Nungua) headed by an Assistant Director designated Officer-In-Charge(O.I.C.).

The key functions of the Department include:

• To implement educational policies and regulations through the supervisory role it exercises over both public and private schools,
  
  
• To ensure efficient and effective quality teaching and learning in both private and public schools in the Municipality and c). To improve school infrastructure (buildings and classroom furniture) and other needed logistics.

The Zonal Councils (Teshie and Nungua)

The Assembly is made up of 2 Zonal Councils, Teshie and Nungua and these councils almost perform the same functions. Below is the list of functions they perform.

Day to day Administration of its area, b) Data collection and record keeping, c) Promotion of Sound Environmental Sanitation, d) Waste Management Services, e) Revenue Mobilisation, f) Development Control and Planning, g) Preparation of Annual Estimates and Expenditure Control.

Community Voluntarism

Due to the urbanised or cosmopolitan nature of the municipality, voluntarism for developmental projects is not generally high but there are a few localities identified with vibrant community based organisations.