The Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Religious Affairs has introduced a new distribution model for the District Assembly Common Fund. Starting this year, 80% of the fund will be allocated directly to the regions to enhance local development.

The remaining 20% will be designated for projects managed by agencies such as the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), ensuring continued support for critical national initiatives.

This initiative is designed to reinforce decentralization and improve local governance by granting districts greater control over their development priorities.

The announcement came during a visit by Swiss Ambassador to Ghana, H.E. Simone Petra Giger, to the ministry on March 10. The discussions focused on strengthening diplomatic and developmental partnerships in local governance.

Addressing the media, Sector Minister Ahmed Ibrahim emphasized that all developmental authorities and agencies will now operate under the ministry’s supervision to ensure district-level employees play an active role in local development. “ What President Mahama is doing now is bringing all the development authorities back under the Ministry of Local Government. He is also committing to allocating 80% of the District Assembly Common Fund to the districts so they can independently decide how to use the funds.

“With this, districts in Accra will no longer have to move facilities like boreholes and toilets to different districts in other regions. The essence of decentralization is to devolve power to the people while equipping them with the necessary resources to address their local needs, which often differ from the priorities of the central government. What we are doing now is the best approach, and they are happy about it,” he said.

He also highlighted the importance of a transparent and efficient property rate collection system to boost revenue for local governance.

According to him, President Mahama’s decision to reassign all development authorities to the Ministry of Local Government, along with the commitment to allocate 80% of the District Assembly Common Fund directly to the districts, will allow them to make independent financial decisions.

Swiss Ambassador H.E. Simone Petra Giger expressed confidence in the government’s commitment to decentralization and reaffirmed Switzerland’s continued collaboration with Ghana in supporting local governance and national development.

“Ghana has a long history of decentralization reforms. While this was a courtesy meeting, we also received a positive signal from the minister, indicating that Ghana is entering a new phase of decentralization, which I believe will benefit the country.

“My visit today also signifies that Switzerland stands with Ghana, and we are here to stay. If Ghana is truly committed to taking the next step by granting more power and authority to local governments, we will be extremely happy to support that effort,” she stated.