A capacity building workshop for 48 stakeholders from the eight CoST participating districts has been organised to expose them to existing laws in Ghana that enable and promote disclosure of projects and contract data.

Knowledge was also shared on CoST core features and how the assurance process was conducted as well as help disseminate the findings and recommendations of the second Assurance Report.

Mr. Isaac Aidoo, CoST Sekondi/Takoradi Manager, said the occasion would also be used to form CoST District Citizen's Monitoring Groups and introduce the participants to social accountability tools.

He said delivery of public infrastructure was a major priority of Ghana's Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).

Although public procurement was guided by the Public Procurement Act, 2016 (Act 914), procurement processes were fraught with perceived and real cases of corruption and information on projects were often not publicly-accessible resulting in shoddy works, delays and abandonment, he said.

Mr. Aidoo said other issues related to public Infrastructure delivery included non-conformity of designs with feasibility recommendations and lack of user-centeredness, which had diminished the anticipated benefits for citizens in publicly-funded infrastructure, thereby eroding trust in the government.

The CoST Assurance Process, therefore focused on what happened at each stage of public infrastructure delivery, generate compelling information in the form of a report that would be used to strengthen social accountability.

CoST Sekondi-Takoradi launched its second assurance report, showcasing significant strides made in promoting transparency in the delivery of public infrastructure in the participating MMDAs by highlighting issues on project and contract data disclosure as well as proffering recommendations based on findings to spur reform.

The assurance process was conducted on eight (8) infrastructure projects from eight MMDAs in the Western Region namely; Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly, Effia-Kwesinmintsim Municipal Assembly, Ahanta West Municipal Assembly, Nzema East Municipal Assembly, Mpohor District Assembly, Shama District Assembly, Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipal Assembly and Wassa East District Assembly.

The assurance report provided basis for citizens and other stakeholders to hold duty-bearers accountable and lead to better outcomes from investments made into public infrastructure delivery.