Elmina, May 23, GNA - The acting Chief Director of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD), Mr Daniel Nyankamawu, on Monday urged district finance officers and other financial institutions in charge of implementing the Community Based Rural Development Project (CBRDP) to be proactive to ensure its success. He noted that the project, the second phase of the Village Infrastructure Project (VIP), had an influence over all development projects in the country, particularly in the rural areas. Mr Nyankamawu made the call at the opening of a three-day 'technical workshop' for the financial management of the CBRDP at Elmina.

Twenty-three participants are attending the workshop, organised by the Rural Infrastructure Co-ordinating Unit (RICU) of the CBRDP from projects units within the MLGRD, the World Bank and finance officers of district assemblies in the Central and Western regions. It is among others, to determine and agree on the role and responsibilities of zonal accountants under the new capacity building concept of the financial management capacity building team under the CBRDP, as well as develop strategies for disbursements through financial management reports.

Mr Nyankamawu urged them to take into consideration the newly enacted laws of financial administration, procurement and the Internal Audit Acts when implementing the project.

He said financial monitoring reports were to be prepared and submitted to the World Bank on time and that an appropriate system to ensure that district assemblies and area councils maintained adequate and reliable records of all financial transactions was to be set up. Mr Nyankamawu tasked the participants to come up with strategies that would enable them to achieve the objectives of the project, so that financial accountability in decentralization would be effected. The participants would be treating topics like, "development credit agreement, financial management implementation of funds flow arrangements under CBRDP and financial monitoring reports".