Accra, June 21, GNA - Mr Issah Ayanaba, Acting Director of the Department of Community Development, on Wednesday said low staffing level remained an utmost challenge for the Department, to improve the living standards of rural and deprived urban communities in the country. He said the Department had only 900 employees instead of the required number of 1,500 staff, to extend support services and disseminate development related information to the rural folks. Mr Ayanaba said this when Mr Stephen Asamoah Boateng, Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, paid a familiarization visit to the Department and to interact with the workers.

The Acting Director said inadequate transportation for field officers to undertake activities and monitor the activities of Regional Directors was also a challenge affecting their performance. He said the Department existed to mobilise and work in partnership with communities, by using all available resources to improve upon living standards, through adult education and extension services. Mr Ayanaba said, to attain this objective, the Department was providing vocational and other employable skills to the youth, women and other self-reliant citizens to stem rural-urban migration.

He said the Department could boast of major achievements, such as training in financial management for 680 women groups, employable skills for 3,615 youth and improved technical training for 560 rural artisans. He mentioned other problems confronting the Department as inadequate funding for capacity building and lack of computer accessories to enhance performance at the regional and district levels. He called on Government to revamp the Department through the provision of increased funding, logistics and equipment to enable it to promote community participation and volunteerism.

Mr Asomoah Boateng urged the workers to be efficient saying; "in this era it is necessary to be efficient and hardworking before motivation and development will come".

He tasked the workers to be focused on what they did because that was the only way to move forward to achieve set goals and for others to appreciate what they were doing.

Mr Asamoah Boateng advised the Department to develop a complain system; establish good communication channels to interact with one another.

He pledged to support the Department to resolve some its problems to help to improve the lives of the people in the rural communities.