The Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, has called for stronger coordination among government institutions to ensure the effective implementation of Ghana’s new decentralisation policy.

She said decentralisation must move beyond policy documents and lead to better public services and real improvements in the lives of citizens.

Professor Opoku-Agyemang made the call after chairing a meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Decentralisation to review the implementation of the National Decentralisation Policy and Strategic Framework for 2026–2030.

The Framework was recently approved by Cabinet.

According to the Vice President, the approval was an important step, but its success will depend on how well it was implemented.

She said decentralisation should bring governance and public services closer to the people and make development more responsive to the needs of communities across the country.

Professor Opoku-Agyemang said this required government institutions to work together instead of operating in isolation.

She noted that areas such as education, health, sanitation, infrastructure, finance and local government were closely linked.

“Education, health, sanitation, infrastructure, finance and local government are interconnected, and our institutions must coordinate their efforts rather than operate in silos,” she said.

The Vice President also stressed the need for strong citizen participation in the decentralisation process.

She said citizens must understand the reforms, the responsibilities of public institutions and the role they could play in making decentralisation effective.

She further called for greater accountability and adequate resources to support the implementation of the policy.

Professor Opoku-Agyemang said the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee was established to promote dialogue, coordination and collective action across government.

She said the immediate task was to turn the new Framework into practical action that would improve services at the local level.

She said effective decentralisation would require government to ensure that decisions and development programmes responded to the actual needs of communities.

The Vice President urged the various institutions involved in the process to work together to ensure that the policy translated into tangible benefits for citizens.

She said the focus should now be on implementation and measurable improvements in public service delivery across Ghana.=