Mahama Ayariga confident of fixing Ghana’s local government system within tenure

Minister for Local Government, Mahama Ayariga, says the Mahama administration has enough time to address the major challenges confronting Ghana’s local government system. He believes many of the challenges are organisational rather than a result of inadequate resources and can therefore be addressed through stronger leadership, better coordination and more effective use of available resources. Speaking on Citi FM on Thursday, September 10, Mr Ayariga said his experience in government would enable him to work effectively with regional ministers and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) to improve local governance.

“I believe that even though I have barely two and a half years, I believe that that is enough time to fix the system,” he said. Mr Ayariga said strengthening local government would be central to restoring public confidence in the administration, given that it is the level of government with which citizens interact most frequently. He said his priority would be to improve coordination among local authorities and ensure that existing resources are used more effectively to address challenges and improve service delivery.

According to him, better management of resources, coupled with stronger leadership at the local level, could significantly improve the performance of the local government system within the remaining period of the administration. Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mahama Ayariga, says his decision to leave Parliament for the executive was a personal choice, driven by his desire to help address longstanding challenges in Ghana’s local governance system. The former Majority Leader said he felt his work in Parliament had reached a relatively stable stage, with key government business such as the approval of ministerial nominees, major budgets and judicial appointments already completed.

He explained that remaining in Parliament would largely mean waiting for major annual business such as the budget and State of the Nation Address, while the executive required sustained attention to tackle pressing governance challenges. Speaking on Citi FM on Thursday, September 10, Mr Ayariga said he wanted to put his experience to work in an area where he believed significant reforms were needed. “I was happy to go to Local Government because I have always felt that’s really where we need a lot of fixing,” he said.

President John Mahama appointed Mr Ayariga as Minister for Local Government on August 7, and he was sworn into office on August 29. He said the President was initially reluctant to release him from Parliament but eventually accepted his decision to join the executive.