Funding constraints and institutional resistance pose major risks to Ghana’s decentralisation reforms, a senior official has warned, as the government pushes ahead with a broad policy overhaul.
Gameli Kewuribe Hoedoafia said the estimated cost of implementing the policy over five years is about one billion cedis, requiring coordinated financing across ministries, agencies and development partners.
“We are not asking government to bring one billion cedis at once… each institution must budget for its part,” he said on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Monday (25 May).
He said authorities plan to leverage partnerships with development agencies, the private sector and the diaspora, as well as corporate social responsibility initiatives, to bridge funding gaps.
However, Hoedoafia warned that resistance from officials reluctant to relinquish power could also slow implementation.
“No one wants to easily let go of power,” he said, noting that performance contracts for senior public officials would be used to enforce compliance.
The policy also assigns a central role to the media as watchdogs, advocates and facilitators of public engagement.
“We want the media to put the spotlight on local governments… ask them what they have done with the resources they have received,” he said.
Hoedoafia added that citizen participation would be critical to the success of the reforms, urging Ghanaians to actively engage local authorities and demand accountability.
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