President J. A. Kufuor is expected to launch the Rural Development Trust Fund (RUDFUND) at Kwasi Doi, a village on the Nsawam-Aburi road in the Akuapem South district on Monday, November 11, this year, as part of the Rural Development Week celebration.

This was stated by Hon. K. Baah-Wiredu, Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, at a press briefing in Accra. He said the theme of the week celebration is "Rural Development, Key to National Prosperity," reports Desmond Carboo.

The Minister said the issue of rural development is to strengthen our institutional and implementation arrangements. If rural development is properly packaged, its co-ordination and implementation responsibilities clearly sorted out as being done now on continuous basis and the policies are right, we believe that it would be the key to clear the barrier to national prosperity. "Our focus this year will be all weather roads and dependable rural telephone communications."

Baah-Wiredu said the ministry sees the celebration of the week as an important milestone in the annals of Ghana's development process. It is therefore intended to use the occasion to highlight government policies and strategies for the development of the rural areas of Ghana.

The week will provide the opportunity for the public to be informed of government's commitment to improving conditions of our rural population and the concrete actions and initiatives being taken to achieve them; to emphasise the role of rural communities themselves in the development of rural Ghana; to emphasise the need to encourage and mobilise private sector support for rural development as a means of alleviating poverty, provision of housing, creating employment and enhancing the living conditions of rural communities generally.

In this respect he said, government is taking the initiative to actively involve all identified stakeholders - NGOs, public institutions, development partners, civil society etc. to contribute towards the achievement of this national, goal. Through such enablement and support interventions from public-private partnership we believe can make a giant leap forward.

The Minister said a National Planning Committee under the chairmanship of Deputy Minister Hajia Alima Mahama has been constituted to plan the week. A number of activities have been scheduled at various levels of government for the celebration of the week.

President Kufuor will also take the opportunity to launch the "Rural Development Trust Fund- (RUDFUND) - which is a private sector initiative to mobilise resources to accelerate development of rural areas of the country.

He said other activities that will take place at the launching ceremony include: sod-cutting to commence a day nursery for Kwasi Doi community from HIPC funds. He noted that this project which will be in commemoration of the week was selected by the chiefs and people of the village themselves as their number one felt need; exhibition of photographs on rural development projects and related activities; A fair to exhibit agricultural produce, new research findings, agro-chemical products.

The President is also scheduled to visit agro-processing/agro-based industries and farms in the area after the ceremony.

A number of interesting discussions is expected to take place in the media during the week to highlight the significance of rural development and the premium that government places on it.

Mr. Baah-Wiredu said during the week, each district assembly would be expected to select a project in a rural settlement for either a sod-cutting inspection or commissioning. They will also organise public fora in selected settlements to discuss challenges facing rural dwellers and the way forward.

"In Metropolitan/Municipal Assembly suburbs and zones such as Sukura and Fadama, the same exercises of sod cutting, commissions, visits inspections and communities meetings will be held. Cities are absorbing rural areas, for example Bubuashie and Darkuman in Accra and Kwadaso in Kumasi used to be rural areas some years back but are now part of Accra and Kumasi Metropolis.

"For purposes of transparency the, ministry has started publicising on going project in the districts in the newspaper. It will interest Ghanaians to note that most of this projects are sited in rural areas and Ghanaians can verify from papers the truth about this."

He expressed the hope that by the end of the week-long celebration the people of this country would have been sufficiently sensitised to know the focus and direction of government's rural development programme and the role each is expected to play to raise the quality of life of the rural population.