World Bank commends KMA : For judicious use of funds
The World Bank has commended the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) for the judicious use of the Urban Development Grant (UDG) of the bank to provide essential services for people in the metropolis.
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The Head of the World Bank Mission in Ghana, Mr Martin Onyach-Olaa, made the commendation after visiting some of the facilities funded with the UDG in the city.
The projects include the Rattray Park, a modern classroom block for the State Experimental Basic School and a 3,000-seater capacity assembly hall at the Kumasi Academy being implemented in two phases.
Grant
The UDG is a World Bank financial facility that is disbursed to municipal and metropolitan assemblies (MMAs) to strengthen their capacity in essential service delivery using existing district assembly performance-based funding mechanism.
Currently, 36 MMAs, including the KMA, are beneficiaries of the grant in the country.
Mission
The purpose of the World Bank Mission tour of the project sites was to enable the team, which comprised experienced technocrats from the bank, the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the Local Government Service Secretariat, to acquaint itself with the situation on the ground and discuss issues pertaining to the smooth implementation of the local government capacity support project.
Disbursement
The KMA indicated that from October 2012 to March 2016, the assembly received GH¢31,808,787.32 from the World Bank.
Out of that amount, the assembly utilised GH¢28,731,612.36, representing 90 per cent, to construct 88 essential service facilities in the areas of healthcare delivery, education, safety and security, water and sanitation, road infrastructure and revenue generation.
The KMA Chief Executive, Mr Kojo Bonsu, expressed appreciation to the World Bank for the support and indicated that it had been put to judicious use for the benefit of the people.
He appealed for additional support to accelerate the development of the metropolis.