The Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, has urged managers of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) to accelerate development at the local level and prioritise efforts to reduce inequality across the country.
She gave the advice during a visit to the Office of the District Assemblies Common Fund in Accra yesterday, where she met management and staff to review progress and challenges in the utilisation of the Fund.
The Vice President said government remained committed to supporting the DACF to deliver on its mandate, stressing the need for teamwork and early intervention to address challenges before they escalate.
“For you to know that we are working together as a team, we all operate in one mission, and that purpose is to serve our people. We are here to support you. Just let us know the issues early so we can fix them,” she said.
She emphasised that the core objective of the Common Fund must be to reduce inequality and improve living conditions in deprived communities, particularly for women, children and other vulnerable groups.
According to her, development should not be concentrated in major cities while rural areas continue to lack basic amenities such as water, electricity, healthcare facilities and schools.
She added that policies and projects must be people-centred and should directly improve livelihoods, rather than serve political or administrative interests.
The Vice President also welcomed efforts by the DACF to explore alternative sources of funding, including support from the private sector and Ghanaians in the diaspora.
She noted that such initiatives, if properly structured, could increase resources for development at the district level, and called for robust monitoring and tracking systems to ensure transparency and value for money.
The Administrator of the DACF, Mr Michael Harry Yamson, said the Fund was now focused on reducing inequality and promoting grassroots development under a new policy direction.
He explained that the DACF aims to reduce the development gap between the most and least endowed districts by at least 10 per cent by 2028, with priority areas including water, health, education and roads.
Mr Yamson said reforms introduced since 2025 had transformed the Fund from what he described as an “analogue” system into a fully digital operation, thereby improving transparency and efficiency.
He noted that the introduction of a digital platform, known as Intellix, allows for real-time tracking of projects and expenditure, enabling citizens to monitor how funds are utilised in their respective districts.
He further disclosed that the share of funds disbursed directly to districts had increased significantly, rising from about 53.5 per cent between 2019 and 2023 to over 90 per cent in the past year.
Despite these gains, Mr Yamson expressed concern about delays in the release of funds, which he said continue to hamper project execution.
“For five months of this year, nothing has happened because the funds have not been released,” he said, warning that such delays often compel districts to rush projects within limited timeframes, thereby affecting quality.
He appealed for the establishment of a fixed timetable for fund releases to ensure effective planning and execution of development projects.
Mr Yamson also revealed that the Fund is owed billions of cedis from previous allocations, and called for support to recover the outstanding amounts to accelerate development nationwide.
On project delivery, he said hundreds of classroom blocks, health facilities and other infrastructure projects were either started or completed last year, with more expected this year.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG
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