Ghana Local Government Capacity Support Project

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The development objectives of the Local Government Capacity Support Project for Ghana are: (i) to strengthen the intergovernmental fiscal framework; (ii) to strengthen local public financial management and accountability for improved infrastructure and services in urban assemblies; and (iii) to improve citizens' engagement with urban assemblies and their perceptions of urban management. There are four components to the project. The first component of the project is strengthening the fiscal framework for decentralization. This component will support the establishment of a predictable and transparent fiscal framework for local governance, through assisting Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) to develop the intergovernmental fiscal framework, introduce local government public financial management reforms in five key areas, and manage the overall system of intergovernmental fiscal relations. The second component of the project is enhancing decentralized urban service delivery. This component will support selected urban local governments to improve their management capabilities in the identified key reform areas through two sub-components: (i) a performance-based Urban Development Grant (UDG), and (ii) targeted capacity support to participating local governments. The third component of the project is stimulating demand for accountable local governance and service delivery. This component will generate civil society demand for financial information from urban assemblies (e.g. budgets and audits); foster more effective engagement of civil society with assemblies on this information (i.e., helping civil society to understand it and provide a forum for exchange and debate around the information); and strengthen the capacity and engagement of citizens' representatives on the budget and service delivery issues. The fourth component of the project is institutional and project management support. This component will provide support to Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) in fulfilling its role in supporting the decentralization process specifically related to fiscal decentralization and urban development. Support will be provided in three broad areas: (i) strengthening MLGRD through providing institutional support to the Urban Development Unit, and the Fiscal Decentralization Secretariat; (ii) supporting the management of the UDG; and (iii) project management and implementation support, including procurement and financial management specialists, project audits, evaluations, citizen surveys, project communications activities, training and workshops, and operating costs.