Mr Emmanuel Tenkorang, a researcher at the University of Cape Coast (UCC), tasked metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) to endeavour to be innovative and explore more ways of enhancing their internally generated revenue.
He pointed out that there was the need for them to take advantage of Section 89 of the Local Government Act, which permits them to “invest all or any part of their monies in reserves as approved by the Assembly”.
Mr Tenkorang made the call when he presented research findings on the performance of the assemblies in revenue generation at a day’s workshop on ‘strengthening the MMDAs revenue generation for sustainable development’ organized by the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD) at Elmina.
He also noted that the lack of the requisite data base was a factor hindering increased revenue sources and said if they developed and maintained such data and created awareness among rate payers, their internally generated funds would improve considerably.
Using the Cape Coast Municipal Assembly (CCMA) as a case study, he observed that although Cape Coast was a major tourism centre, the Assembly was not involved in tourism development as a means of raising more funds, nor had it explored the “huge potential” in investing in the sale of serviced-lands.
Mr Tenkorang pointed out that the lack of a well developed data base often resulted in assemblies either under or over projecting their expected revenue, which most often left deficits in their accounts.
He also identified the lack of trained personnel, logistics and incentives for collectors and tax evasion as some of the hindrances of revenue generation at the local level.
Mr Kwabena Amoah, Director at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, also repeated calls on the assemblies to undertake comprehensive street naming and house numbering in their areas to serve as basis for planning, monitoring and enforcement of physical and environmental development.
This he said could also facilitate easy identification and location of addresses of homes and businesses, for easy delivery of mails and conveyance of passengers to specific addresses without difficulty.
Professor Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi, Executive Director of the CDD who opened the workshop said the time had come for assemblies to review their mechanisms for internally generated funds to make them more efficient.
Nana Ato Arthur, Central Regional Minister, who chaired the function also called on the assemblies to explore more avenues and “adopt creative schemes” to improve their revenue, to facilitate the strengthening and sustenance of the local government system.