10 Departments cease to exist
Ten departments have ceased to exist, following the ongoing implementation of the Legislative Instrument (L.I. 1961) by the Local Government Secretariat.
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They are the Department of Social Welfare, the Department of Feeder Roads and the Public Works Department.
Others are the Department of Community Development, the Town and Country Planning Department, as well as the Department of Rural Housing and Cottage Industries.
The rest are the Department of Animal Health and Production, the Agricultural Extension Services Division, Crop Services Division and the Department of Agricultural Engineering.
Briefing the Daily Graphic about the Legislative Instrument, the Head of the Local Government Secretariat, Dr Callistius Mahama, said the work of the affected departments had been fused into 10 departments now.
The departments to exist
The new departments are the Central Administration Department, the Works Department ( fusion of PWD and Department of Feeder Roads), the Physical Planning Department, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Social Welfare and Community Development.
The rest are the Legal Department, the Waste Management Department, the Urban Roads Department, the Budgeting and Rating Department and the Transport Department.
Implications
Section 161 (1) of Act 462 states, “ Every branch, division or unit of the departments or organisations specified in the Eighth Schedule to this Act which has been established in the districts of Ghana and in existence on the coming into force of this Act, shall cease to exist in the districts.
What that means, according to Dr Mahama, is that the new departments would now operate as part of the district assemblies as stated by Section 161 (2).
Section 161 (2) states that “The members of staff of the branches, divisions or units of the departments or organisations specified in the Eighth Schedule to this Act shall be transferred to the relevant departments of the district assembly and they shall form part of the local government service when established.”
Dr Mahama further explained that the two letter words ‘in’ and ‘of’ were significant in positioning the departments as part of the district assemblies.
What has been done so far?
“We have formulated conditions of service and scheme of service for the 24 different classes of professionals in the service. Besides, guidelines for the establishment and integration, as well as the appointment of heads of departments have been developed and are being implemented,” Dr Mahama stated.
Currently, the Local Government Service, he indicated, was organising series of nationwide orientation programmes for the new decentralised departments in the districts to make their programmes and policies responsive to the needs of the district assemblies.
The implementation has been challenging, especially in determining who will head the departments to be merged.
Dr Mahama said to ensure fairness, heads of such department to be merged were required to apply for the position and the best selected to head the new department.
