LOCAL/ COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLANS

COMMUNITY NEEDS AND ASPIRATIONS

This section of the report presents problems that were outlined after consultation with the people. The following are the problems and key development issues of the people summarised under the seven (7) thematic areas of the GSGDA II.

Problems Identified:

Ensuring and Sustaining Macroeconomic Stability

1. Inadequate financial support from DA for community initiated projects

2. Low income levels

3. Low revenue mobilization

Enhanced competitiveness of Ghana’s private sector

1. Inadequate financial assistance to support farming

2. Inadequate markets

3. Low price for cocoa beans

Accelerated agricultural modernization and natural resource management

1. Land degradation and pollution of water bodies by mining activities

2. Deforestation by chain saw operators

3. Inadequate cocoa spraying gangs

4. Inadequate cocoa inputs for farmers e.g. fertilizer, chemicals

5. Lack of irrigation facilities

6. Inadequate palm oil extraction machines

7. Low access to improved seeds

8. Low interest of youth in agriculture

9. Under development of tourist sites

Infrastructure and Human Settlements Development

1. Poor drainage system

2. Poor nature of roads

3. Inadequate street lights

4. Soil erosion

5. Inadequate planning schemes for communities

6. Inadequate community centers

7. Lack of electricity in some communities

8. Inadequate staff accommodation (including teachers and nurses)

9. Inadequate health facilities and wards

10. Poor telecommunication network service

11. Frequent accidents on some roads

Human development, productivity and employment

1. Inadequate doctors and nurses

2. Long distance covered to attend school

3. Teenage pregnancy

4. Inadequate ICT centers

5. Inadequate trained teachers

6. Inadequate provision of food for some children (school feeding programme)

7. Inadequate employment opportunities

8. Inadequate scholarships for children

9. Inadequate water and sanitation facilities

Transparent and accountable governance

1. Inadequate funds to run unit committees

2. Inadequate law courts

3. Inadequate police posts

4. Inadequate security personnel

5. Inadequate training for Assembly members and unit committee members

6. Increase in social vices

7. Inadequate support to the disabled in society

8. Inadequate training for Assembly members and District Assembly Staff

KEY DEVELOPMENT ISSUES

The following issues were outlined after a thorough assessment of the problems identified:

Ensuring and Sustaining Macroeconomic Stability

1. Improve financial management of District Assembly revenues

2. Improve revenue generation

Enhancing competitiveness of Ghana’s Private sector

1. Establish database on all private sector operations in the District

2. Improve access to credit support for businesses

3. Improve access to marketing for private sector operations

Accelerated Agricultural Modernization and Natural Resource Management

1. Provision of agro-based industries for palm oil processing

2. Promote re-afforestation and protect the forest

3. Improve access to high yielding seedlings for farmers and better farming practices

4. Improve access to farming inputs

5. Expansion of mass spraying for cocoa

6. Encourage establishment of fish farming and animal rearing

7. Expand youth employment programmes especially in agriculture

8. Development of tourist sites

9. Protection of land and water bodies from mining activities

Infrastructure and Human Settlements Development

1. Improve drainage systems

2. Preparation of planning schemes for communities

3. Improve staff accommodation( teachers, health care staff)

4. Improve upon road surface conditions and transport infrastructure

5. Improve upon telecommunication network service

6. Provide additional community centers

7. Expansion of electricity supply

Human Development, Productivity and Employment

1. Improve access to doctors and nurses

2. Improve quality and access to educational infrastructure at all levels

3. Provision of sports facilities

4. Promote family planning methods

5. Improve access to water

6. Improve access to sanitary facilities

7. Create employment opportunities

8. Ensure FCUBE

9. Improve road safety education

10. Enhance access to COCOBOD scholarships

Transparent and Accountable Governance

1. Improve revenue generation

2. Strengthening District Assembly Structures to promote good governance and participation

3. Adequately resource District Planning Coordinating Unit (DPCU) to perform its statutory roles

4. Strengthen public awareness and advocacy on civic rights and responsibilities

5. Provide adequate support to the disabled in society

6. Enforcement of District Assembly by-laws

7. Promotion of cultural activities

8. Provision of adequate security

9. Provide training for Assembly members and District Assembly Staff

Community needs and aspirations identified have been harmonized by relating them to the key gaps/ problems or issues identified under the review of performances of the GSGDA I, the profile and other interventions. To ensure coherence, each community’s needs and aspirations is scored against the key gaps/ problems or issues identified under the review of performance.

MONITORING AND EVALUATION

MONITORING AND EVALUATION ARRANGEMENT FOR DISTRICT MEDIUM TERM DEVELOPMENT PLAN (2010 – 2013)

INTRODUCTION

Planning is not an end in itself but only means of achieving a specific objective. The main objective of the planning process is the improvement in the well-being of the people, not the planning document. District Assemblies, as planning authorities are responsible not only for the formulation of plans but also for their implementation, monitoring and evaluation. One instrument which can be used to measure the success of a project/programme is the monitoring and evaluation system (M&E).

MONITORING

Monitoring is the continuous or periodic review of the implementation of an activity to ensure that input deliveries, work schedules, targeted outputs and other required actions are proceeding according to plan. Monitoring as a management instrument, pre-supposes that development programmes must be managed as planned. Monitoring measures, records progress of implementation and focuses on the compliance with the plan. It is therefore a continuous task during the whole life cycle of a programme. The monitoring process requires the timely collection and analysis of data during the analysis, planning and implementation of the District Three-year Medium Term (2010 – 2013) Development Plan (DMTDP).

Monitoring is important in achieving efficient and effective project or programme performance by providing feedback to project management. This enables management to improve operational plans and take timely corrective action in case of shortfalls and constraints.

Monitoring is important in achieving efficient and effective project or programme performance by providing feedback to project management. This enables management to improve operational plans and take timely corrective action in case of shortfalls and constraints.

At the planning level, monitoring process under the 3-year Medium Term Development Plan would compare the planned time schedules, organizational structure, and financial provisions against actual achievement.

While monitoring is correct oriented, taking the logical framework (log frame) as the core element, four major areas would be measured and analyzed, based on the indicators which were developed in the planning process.

1. The target set in the objectively verifiable indicators (OVI) which measure the achievement of the programme objective (that is, goal, purpose and outputs.) In this case, direct and indirect impact indicators reflect that the extent of which projects or programmes in the 3-year medium term development plan is impacting on the lives of the target population or beneficiaries would be measured.

2. The important assumption which is incorporated into a set of indicators would be continuously observed ad a measure of external conditions. For the purpose of monitoring development programme, the assumptions upon which plans have been based and the objectives to be achieved must be clearly spelt out. The assumptions are very important in monitoring projects because they serve as the pivot around which development programmes from which project emanate. Assumptions are the necessary conditions that must prevail for projects and programmes to be implemented successfully. Hence, an assumption must be continuously monitored to test their validity.

3. Operational indicators have been developed to measure the control of resources, personnel, financial disbursements, expenditure, incomes and time.

4. Performance and efficiency indicator have been developed to indicate whether activities have been completed. Monitoring assesses the extent to which the activities are being implemented according to schedule.

5. The means of verification (MOV) would indicate where data can be gathered in a cost-effective way.

The monitoring system devised for the District’s Medium Term Development Plan seeks to examine compliance with the plan. Simple monitoring techniques like the use of charts indicating time table, responsibility matrix, financial schedules, completion dates and when monitoring should take place are mainstreamed in the monitoring arrangements.

There are development programmes or projects implemented by line ministries, non-governmental organizations, para-statal and the private sector which would be monitored to avert duplication of efforts.

Monitoring the implementation of the District Medium term plan based on the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy 1(GPRS 1) would be done through the use of poverty monitory systems. These would facilitate the tracking of projected periods to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of wealth and growth inducing pro-pro intervention for beneficiary communities during the planning process.

Participatory monitoring would be used to record the periodically keep track of progress towards objectives on a day-to-day, week-to-week and monthly basis. Participatory monitoring would be locally tailored in recording information which meets local needs and aspirations. Monitoring tools selected primary address cultural, social, economic factors operating in the community.

Pending the release of monitoring and evaluation guidelines from the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), a tentative monitoring format has been devised.

The monitoring and evaluation or programmes and projects for the four year planned period (2014-2017) would be undertaken by the District Monitoring and Evaluation Team. The composition of the team is:

The District Co-coordinating Director

The District Planning Officer

The District Budget Officer

The District Works Engineer

The District Finance Officer

The Chairman Works Sub-committee

The Relevant Heads of the Departments e.g. Agriculture, Education, and Health etc.

EVALUATION

Evaluation determines the causes of deviations from the plan, the initial effects, (planned/unplanned) as well as the impact the programme has had, e.g., the effect on the target group and many others. Evaluation provides the planner with the explanation of why things have happened the way they have, thereby giving the beneficiary communities the necessary information to rectify the anomaly.

Participatory evaluation encourages and reflects on what has happened in the past in order to make decisions about the future. By evaluation, beneficiary communities learn about things that have worked well and vice versa and through the process, it becomes more likely that corrective measures will be implemented. The effectiveness of participatory evaluation lies in the understanding of the community to agree on the purpose of the evaluation. The objectives of the project, as well as the expected outputs provide a forum for changes and adjustments if the need arises in order to achieve desired results. In the preparation of the three-year medium term development plan,

community evaluation teams are envisaged to play active roles in information gathering, and analysis to ensure that recommendations from evaluations reach the intended beneficiaries. Decisions made and feedback is incorporated into the project or activities, to ensure re-planning where necessary.

Terminal, ex-ante and ex-post evaluation would be undertaken to ensure whether the intended result has been achieved or not as well as the reasons for failure. Terminal evaluation would be undertaken immediately the programme is completed, while “ex-post” evaluation would be undertaken after some years after completion of programme.

Ex-post evaluation would be undertaken to analyse the goals and objective of the project to determine the impact which the development plan has had on the target population. Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) to a larger extent could be seen as involving different planning processes, such as data collection and analysis, documentation, assessment and interpretation, decision making and remedial action. Participatory Impact Monitoring and Evaluation System (PIMES) would be used to analyse and establish correlation between poverty focused intervention and impact on livelihood.