CCD-GHANA LAUNCHES NEW PROGRAMME ...To Promote Good Governance in the North

The Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has assumed the leading role in empowering Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) engaged in the promotion of good governance and democracy in the Northern Region to intensify their public education campaign on grass-root participation, democracy and demand for accountability from duty bearers.

CDD-Ghana is of the view that most of the good civil society support programmes and other government development initiatives like the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) and Northern Rural Growth Project (NRGP) could only succeed, if the CSOs and the general public who are supposed to be direct beneficiaries were empowered to effectively monitor the projects and also demand for accountability.

At the official launch of the newly introduced “Civil Society Support Programme” being run jointly by CDD-Ghana and its partner, GIZ Cooperation in Tamale, the Northern Regional Programme Manager of CDD-Ghana, Mr. Paul Osei-Kuffour said the programme aimed at supporting the CSOs to effectively carry out their activities in the promotion of good governance and democracy in the three Northern Regions.

According to him, the Northern Sector had constantly benefited from so many government interventions geared towards the development of the people and the area at large, yet very little was being felt with the north still seen as the most deprived in the whole of Ghana .

Undoubtedly, the Northern Sector of Ghana has also become the major centre for Non-governmental Organisations seeking to fight poverty, diseases and promoting development, but the lack of monitoring and demand for accountability from the people continues to worsen their plights.

However, Mr. Osei-Kuffour challenged the CSOs to be transparent in their operations and always ensure that they achieve positive results in whatever activities they implement, before they drive away their donors.

He was optimistic that, with the presence of CDD-Ghana in Northern Region, the people would begin to feel the impact of the various interventions of government and the district assemblies.

CDD-Ghana is a research-oriented and policy-based think thank working to promote good governance, democracy and economic openness in Ghana and Africa . The Centre contributed immensely to the peaceful 2008 presidential and parliamentary elections in Ghana , as it spent a chunk of its human and other resources to stage series of peace education in almost all the trouble spots including Bawku, Tamale, Yendi, Zebila and Tongo among others.

Technical Advisor, GIZ/CDD-Ghana Civil Society Support Programme, Sandra Jensen, in a power point presentation, said the main focus of the programme would be geared towards building the capacity of CSOs in Northern Ghana in order to strengthen coalitions and links with the citizenry.

CSOs would also be encouraged to participate in development dialogues at different levels of governance, monitor delivery of public goods and hold government accountable, she stressed.

Ms Jensen mentioned the target groups under the programme as including CSOs, youth groups, media, traditional authorities and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the North. Adding that, intervention areas in 2011 will include youth empowerment, women empowerment, participation in local governance and peace building.

She explained that, interested CSOs and other institutions would have to present proposals which will be vetted or scrutinised to make sure request for financial and technical advise falls within the objective of the programme.

Meanwhile, Ibis Ghana, ActionAid-Ghana and CIDA-PSU also made brief presentations on their activities and areas that they work, so as to give CDD-Ghana an insight perspective of them and how they could collaborate in future to work towards a common purpose of promoting good governance and democracy in the North and Ghana as a whole.