Abstract Of Prof. Kwamena Ahwoi's Presentation At Gimpa's Inaugural Lecture
GIMPA INAUGURAL LECTURE
FUNCTIONS, FUNCTIONARIES AND FUNDS: IS THERE AN ALTERNATIVE DECENTRALISATION IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY:
By: Professor Kwamena Ahwoi
The conceptual confusion surrounding decentralisation has been resolved in Ghana by identifying the national level of governance as a level for ministerial restructuring; the regional level as a level of de-concentration; the district level as a level of devolution and the sub-district level comprising the Urban, Zonal, Town and Area Councils and Unit Committees as a level of devolution, with the focus on district-level devolution. Once resolved, it is realized that decentralisation involves the transfer of functions (responsibilities), of functionaries (bureaucrats and technocrats with the requisite skills and competences), and of funds (budgetary resources) from the Central Government to the lower levels of government.
Until the resolution of the conceptual problem in the Policy Framework for Decentralisation of 2010, the two political parties which have implemented decentralisation in the Fourth Republic – the NDC and the NPP – had approached decentralisation implementation from the different perspectives of devolution and de-concentration respectively in a non-consensual manner at the district levels. This largely explains the forwards and backwards movement of decentralisation implementation in Ghana.
But there are alternative strategies for implementing decentralisation other than what has been going on in Ghana. With the transfer of functions, it is necessary to consolidate all the functions to be performed by the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in one Local Government Act. Instead of seeking to transfer so many functions to the MMDAs at once, the principle of incremental gradualism should have been applied by transferring a few functions to all the MMDAs at once or by transferring all the functions a few MMDAs and progressively expanding the coverage. The strategy should also anticipate new functions to be transferred to the MMDAs in the future. Certain functions could also be assigned to the Regional Coordinating Councils (RCCs) as a de-concentrated level of governance.
With the transfer of functionaries, we should allow MMDAs to “hire and fire” their staff. National level organisations should only establish standards and qualifications for appointment, promotion and discipline to be implemented by the MMDAs.
With the transfer of funds, budgetary allocations that are used to perform functions should be released to the MMDAs once the functions are transferred to them. This can only be operationalised when the “composite budget” system is implemented. We also need to do a study to ascertain the relative costs of central government and local governments in order to be able to scientifically determine the quantum of resources that should go into the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), if at all. We must review the Internal Generated Funds (IGFs) and in particular, the Basic Rate (“lampoon” or “land poll”) as a local government revenue source must be abolished.
There is the need to reform the decentralised planning system to make it participatory and to link it to a system of participatory budgeting. There is also the need to carve out roles for civil society organisations and chiefs and traditional authorities in the local governance system.
The decentralised political structures must also be reformed. The constitutional methodology for selecting the District Chief Executive (DCE) must be maintained, but only the elected members of the MMDAs should vote to approve the President's nominee for the position. The 30 per cent appointed members must likewise be maintained, but the appointment should be made by the Regional House of Chiefs with clear guidelines possibly contained in a Legislative Instrument as to how the appointments are to be made. The constitutional governance arrangements can sustain either a partisan or a non-partisan local government system, but with the jury still out on the subject, the status quo ante of non-partisanship should remain. The regional level of governance should be strengthened a bit by assigning specific management functions to them as well as giving it a separate budget line in the national budget.
The sub-district structures must be strengthened and made more functional.
There are too many central controls in Ghana's decentralised local government systems. There are Presidential, executive, legislative, ministerial, administrative and financial controls which derogate from the country's credentials as one practicing effective decentralisation. Many of the central controls are not necessary and should be abolished.
Finally, the Ministry of Local Government should cease being a sector Ministry and should be converted into a Secretariat for Decentralisation and Local Governance within the Presidency. This is necessary in order to give it the kind of authority which is required to give instructions to other sector Ministers, instructions which are so necessary if decentralisation is to be effectively implemented. The present situation in which the Ministry with a sector Minister seeks to give instructions to colleague Ministers, almost acting like a primus inter pares, is deeply resented by the other Ministers and their top advisors and the least we can do to help whoever is in charge of decentralisation is to elevate him or her to a position in which he or she is perceived as speaking with “The President's Voice”.