The Centre for Democratic Development (CDD)-Ghana, an (NGO), has underlined the need to step up efforts at getting the people to actively participate in governance at the local level.

Nana Aborampah Mensah, its Programmes Officer, said the indifference evidenced in poor turn-outs during district level elections and widespread disinterest in the activities of the assemblies must change.

The people need to be encouraged to remove the apathy to ensure accountability and transparency in the use of state resources.

He was speaking at a workshop held in Kumasi for selected journalists in Ashanti and Brong-Ahafo.

The goal was to sensitize and aid the media to create the needed awareness about the relevance of the local government concept.

“Promoting social accountability through citizens’ participation in local governance”, was the theme.

Nana Aborampah Mensah said the reluctance of the people to closely follow and take part in governance at the grassroots was fueling corruption and impunity.

He said unless that changed, the decentralization concept, would be defeated with serious consequences for the nation’s political development.

He invited the journalists to forge closer partnership with his organization to stimulate active people’s involvement in the local government system.

Nana Aborampah Mensah said the expectation was that it would provide adequate publicity and whip up the enthusiasm of the people in the upcoming district level polls.

Professionals, technocrats and people with expertise should accept to put themselves up for elections to the assemblies to enrich decision-making at the district level and inject pace into the nation’s socio-economic development.

The participants were taken through the decentralization and local governance concept, social accountability and information dissemination.