Inner Cities and Zongos Ministry - An innovation worth commending
One of the striking innovations of the new government is the establishment of the Inner Cities and Zongos Ministry. While some people have praised this innovation, others condemned it, claiming that fixing the many challenges confronting inner cities and Zongos does not require an entirely new ministry.
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But governments have their priorities following from electoral promises and are endowed with sufficient discretion and resources to decide how to fix the challenges besetting the populace. While previous governments rode on the back of Youth Employment Authority and other interventionist bodies to trim the rough edges of policies that have left a section of the people and whole communities behind, this new government hopes to deal with the challenge more effectively through a new ministry.
Intervention
The distribution of the resources of the state, however perfect the formula, is condemned to exhibit some inefficiencies. To resolve these imperfections, interventions become a solution manual difficult, and in most cases, impossible to trade.
For instance, some two decades ago, the government introduced a gender balancing initiative in higher institutions of learning. Female students seeking entry into the universities were allowed more liberal grades and offered admission in disciplines where the male/female ratio was ridiculously awkward and reasonably unfair. In time, such gaps narrowed and the imperfections of the solid policy eradicated.
The intention of the new government in introducing the new ministry is intended, as in the case of gender balancing initiative above, to positively tinker with the general development policy which, when left entirely to Adam Smith’s invisible hand, may leave behind the communities for which this ministry is set.
While under fire at the vetting, the minister communicated the vision of the governing party as regards the inner cities and Zongos as clearly as he could. He mentioned Information Communications Technology( ICT), education, physical infrastructure and the thorny theme: reorientation of these communities.
It is interesting to know that urban Zongos are not retarded in ICT knowledge. While the computer/household ratio maybe unreasonably low compared to the national average, the number of information technology wizards in these communities may be staggering. For instance, persons as young as 14 in any of the relatively urban Zongos in Accra/Tema, kumasi, Takoradi, Techiman, et cetera areas can walk into a pay-as-you-browse Internet cafe and use the device to accomplish a lot of miracles some of the older generation with diplomas and degrees cannot do.
Riding on the back of multiple software, these teenagers can change their sexes online, lure philanthropists far away in the Golf or in the West and succeed in receiving regular stipends via Western Union. Older such wizards carry out more marvelling “trading” on the Internet.
Education
On the issue of education, even if you assemble all the opinion leaders of all the zongos of the world, consensus on the formula will be difficult and even impossible to arrive at. What the minister proposes to do with the teachers who accept postings to the Zongos is just as good as the old policy of offering a cushioning effect for teachers who accepted posting to the rural areas. The latter GES policy, please review notes Mr Minister, is a miserable failure.
Then the almighty reorientation of the communities. We all know that the entire nation needs fixing, psychologically and so do inner communities. This reorientation must be the first thing the minister must expend energies most doing. And this exercise must be neatly, professionally and most dedicatedly carried out by persons who desire real results, however long it takes.
A study that should lead to a deep understanding of the cultural mix, belief system, aspirations, fears and other matrixes that collectively crystalise into attitudes must be researched and properly understood before any of the other three intervention areas can bear lasting fruits. An intelligent study of the demographics may follow.
When we have done an excellent job here, the physical infrastructure the government puts in would be owned and taken proper care of by the communities, the education formula we believe would trigger the kind of catch-up-with-the-rest effect would be understood by the parents, guardians and the children beneficiaries and the little ICT hubs will churn out wiz kids who might put Ghana’s name on the global information technology map some day.
It is refreshing when you come to think about the person the President put in charge of the new ministry. Alhaji Sadique Boniface is a child of the Zongos, has present roots in the inner cities and represents a constituency that has a world-class Zongo and mushrooming little inner cities. The choice couldn’t have been better.
I believe that an initiative as innovative as the one set up for communities whose social and economic challenges far exceed the national average is a vision we must all identify with and support regardless of which political colours arouse us positively. And for those of us born, bred and educated in these communities, our support for a project such as this should be unconditional.
MP, Minister Alhaj Sadique Boniface, welcome one more time.
The writer is a weekly columnist in the Graphic Business and a petroleum salesman. 0544367367 [email protected].
