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Use dialogue to resolve labour issues - Regional Ministers

The Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr Eric opokuREGIONAL Ministers have stated that they have been re-energised by their appointments and are ready to deliver to ensure accelerated development in their respective regions.



They indicated that as agents of change, they would work assiduously to positively influence the realisation of the President's vision for the nation.

Welcoming his colleague regional ministers to the meeting in Kumasi on Saturday, Mr Eric Opoku, the Ashanti Regional Minister, said all the ministers had pledged not to fail the nation.

“We have duty to serve and we will not fail,” he said.

The two-day meeting which is the first by regional ministers under the Mahama administration is on the theme, “Re-energising regional level governance for the attainment of the Better Ghana Agenda.”

The meeting which ended yesterday was intended to provide the regional ministers the opportunity to digest government development objectives and bring them in line with the development aspirations of the people in the regions.

Topics discussed included strengthening relations between the Presidency and regional ministers, strengthening relations between regional ministers and the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs), and ensuring accountability at the regional level.

Mr Opoku said the meeting was held at a very good time for regional ministers who had just assumed office to deepen their knowledge on the workings of the Presidency, as well their relationships with other ministries and the Regional Coordinating Councils (RCCs).

He stated that there was the need to share knowledge as they embarked on the journey to work to change the lives of the people for the better.

The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Akwasi Oppong-Fosu, stated that the government had given specific roles for the RCCs to perform in the national development agenda because of the important roles they played in the structure of local governance.

He said regional ministers as heads of the RCCs would, therefore, have to devise strategies on how best to manage the councils to achieve results.

Mr Oppong-Fosu said development strategies in the regions should be consistent with the development agenda of the government.

He challenged the ministers to ensure that development reached the remotest parts of their regions.

The Senior Presidential Advisor, Mr P.V. Obeng, said the Mahama administration was on track to deliver on its electoral promises.

But, in achieving that, regional ministers had a crucial role to play, that was why the conference was very important, he said.

The Mamponghene, Daasebre Osei Bonsu II, who chaired the function on behalf of the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, spoke against the “many deductions” from the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) at the ministerial level, which usually left the assemblies with very little to prosecute their development activities.

He also called for an improvement in the security situation in the country in view of the number of reported cases of robbery and other criminal acts.

Story: Kwame Asare Boadu/Daily Graphic

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