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The Kpassa Market project now a pile of rubbish and a site for open defecation
The Kpassa Market project now a pile of rubbish and a site for open defecation

The cemetery of development: Abandoned projects swallow Nkwanta-North District

What was supposed to be a modern market for the over 70,000 residents of the Nkwanta-North District in the Volta Region has been reduced to a home for rodents, reptiles and a site for open defecation.

The dilapidated structures whose roofing sheets have lost their aesthetic value and potency out of the frustration of being left idle have also become a hub for smokers.

A number of refuse dumps have also sprung up at various parts of the 30-acre land which had been encroached upon by private individuals with impunity.

When I got to the site of the abandoned Kpassa Market project about 5:30 a.m. that day, a number of the residents – the old and the young, male and female - were heading towards various directions to do their own thing.

Pigs, in an early bird catches the worm mantra, were anxiously waiting to cash in on the goodies; after all, one man’s poison is another’s meat.

The Kpassa Market project which rests on a 30-acre land was started about two decades ago with funding from the European Union (EU) in an attempt to open up the area to development.

While the EU provided funds, the local authority mobilised community labour to support in putting up the structures which have now been left to rot. 

The project was supposed to provide a bigger space with services that will create room for convenience for the business community and also create job opportunities for the residents.

However, a number of setbacks, including financial challenges, disagreement by chiefs over the siting of the facility and lack of investors, have dealt a heavy blow to the project, making it a stillborn.

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Uncompleted three-unit classroom block for Majimaji/Gbosike D/A Primary School
Uncompleted three-unit classroom block for Majimaji/Gbosike D/A Primary School

Uncompleted projects

The abandoned Kpassa Market project is just a tip of the iceberg as there are 22 other uncompleted projects that keep the Nkwanta-North District Assembly in the woods.

Among these projects is the uncompleted E-block for a Community Day Senior High School (SHS) that was started by the erstwhile National Democratic Congress (NDC) government, led by former President John Mahama. The project which is located at Damanko, is at an advanced stage of completion but still far from that feat as funds are not readily available for that purpose.

What this means is that  the about 1,500 students, who could have had access to quality SHS education in line with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Four,  will not get that opportunity.

The Kpassa Senior High Technical School (KPASTEC) Dining Hall project that was started by the previous government to transform the school from a day school to a boarding institution has been abandoned at the roof stage.  

Also making the list of the uncompleted projects in the district are classroom blocks for basic schools, Compound Health Improvement Service (CHIPS) compounds, toilet facilities and water projects.

At Danladi, Gbosike, Mama Akura, Sibi, Kofi Akura and other surrounding communities in the district, one uncompleted project or another is awaiting funds for completion, but the district assembly is bleeding profusely from lack of funds to complete the projects.

Some of the abandoned projects were the initiative of the district assembly while a number of others were financed under the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND).

These uncompleted projects that were supposed to facilitate healthcare delivery, support quality teaching and learning and also better the lives of the people now serve as shelter for domestic animals.

Uncompleted work on the Damanko Community Day SHS
Uncompleted work on the Damanko Community Day SHS

Concerns

The District Chief Executive (DCE) of the area, Mr Jackson Jakayi, indicated that the abandoned projects gave him sleepless nights.

"With the about 22 uncompleted projects at hand, it will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the assembly to start any new development project in the district. The focus now is to ensure that the uncompleted projects are tackled and completed so that the investments that were put into them will not be a waste," he said.

According to him, the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) is woefully inadequate to carry out some of the projects aside from its untimely release by the central government. Meanwhile, the assembly, over the years, has not been able to raise the required internally generated funds (IGF) due to apathy by the residents and perhaps, ineffective tax collection strategies.

Uncompleted CHIPS compound at Danladi
Uncompleted CHIPS compound at Danladi

Threat to SDGs

The string of uncompleted projects in the district is a cause for worry, especially when those facilities are in critical areas of development such as education, health, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH).

Failure to complete these projects means that SDGs Six, on ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, Three, on ensuring healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages, and One, on ending poverty in all its forms everywhere, will be endangered.

The market project for instance has the potential to provide livelihoods to many people along the chain because businesses will emerge and the service sector will expand.

The uncompleted CHIPS compounds is a great worry because the district has no hospital and most of the link roads are in a deplorable state, making it difficult for residents of villages to travel long distances to seek minor health care.

As a result, the health of expectant mothers and their unborn babies are at risk because they have to travel long distances to access pre-natal and post-natal health services.

Abandoned CHIPS compound at Mama Akura now houses domestic animals
Abandoned CHIPS compound at Mama Akura now houses domestic animals

Way forward

It is important that pragmatic steps are taken by the government to ensure that projects which were funded by the GETFUND are completed to ensure value for money.

As of now, the district assembly is adopting all strategies, including revising its IGF mobilisation strategies and prioritisation of its expenditure through prudent use of funds.  However, the projects at hand far outweigh the internal control mechanisms being adopted by the assembly and call for wider external support.

There is, therefore, the need for strategic public private partnerships (PPPs) to carry out these projects, especially in the wake of dwindling donor support.

If the government’s policies aimed at transforming the education, health and agricultural sectors and also open up the rural areas to development are to see the light of day, then efforts must be made to complete these uncompleted projects. After all, governance is a continuum.

 

Writer’s E:mail: [email protected]

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