The Minister for Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development (LGDRD), Mr Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah, has said the Gulf of Guinea Social Northern Regions Cohesion (SOCO) project is helping to accelerate the country’s development.
He added, “It provides rapid development to ensure the people stay cool and are not enticed by the things happening in neighbouring countries, especially the violent extremism
The SOCO Project is a $450 million multi-country Credit Facility Project secured by the Governments of Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin from the World Bank. It aims to improve facilities and security in the northern sectors and border towns of the four West African countries, in the face of emerging extremism in the West African sub-region and to mitigate the spillover effects of climate change.
Out of the $450m facility, the Government of Ghana has secured US $150Million to implement the Project in 48 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in six regions of the country, distributed as follows: Northern – eight Districts, North East – six Districts, Upper East – all the 15 Districts, Upper West – all the 11 Districts, Savannah – four Districts and Oti – four Districts.
Addressing journalists in Accra last Friday, the Minister explained that the things city dwellers might not place much value on are of uttermost priority to the rural folks, whose livelihoods SOCO seeks to improve.
Underscoring the significance of the project, Mr Mensah Korsah said projects that would have taken the government several years to start, through SOCO, resources are made available within three or four months.
“You want water, water comes, you want a bridge to link two communities, the bridge comes, you need that CHIPs Compound to make health care accessible to the people, it comes,” he said.
Ghana is using its share of the facility to provide social and economic infrastructure in the form of schools, institutional toilets, bridges, markets and health facilities.
The people in the regions are also cushioned with capital and skills training to help deliver them from extreme poverty.
The fund is also channelled into all activities that are capable of preventing conflicts and mitigating the harmful effects of climate change.
Therefore, sports facilities and recreational centres are built with the implementers organising inter-community games to help create bonds of friendship among them.
Bala Ali, ISD
