Traditional authorities would have to assert their leadership roles in the economic development of their localities to reduce environmental degradation caused by resource exploitation.

This is emerging from the last session of the ongoing service management and leadership training for traditional authorities in the Ashanti region.

The Africa Progress Report has indicted multinational firms for not doing much for Africa in contract deals and negotiations on mineral wealth.

Former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan has stated that tax avoidance, secret mining deals and financial transfers are depriving Africa of the benefits of its resources boom.

Whilst expecting African countries to improve governance, he entreated the world's richest nations to introduce global rules on transparency and taxation.

Some chiefs participating in the training raised issues of their non-involvement in government’s negotiations with firms in the exploitation of natural resources.

But according to Nana Otuo Acheampong, Head of the Osei Tutu II Centre for Executive Education and Research (OTCEER), it behooves on the traditional authorities to be proactive in engaging government in the exploitation of natural resources.

He believes that chiefs can demand transparency and accountability from government, but they first need to be knowledgeable about project and finance management as well as engage professionals when going into negotiations.

“We cannot continue to blame others when we ourselves don’t learn”, said Nana Otuo. He is confident the ‘Leadership and Financial Management’ module under the OTCEER service management and leadership training “would empower Nananom to assert the right thing to be done”.

The four-modular programme, funded by the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), also covered Service Management and Innovation, ICT and Land Administration, and Contemporary Issues in Leadership.

Director of Programmes at the CEIBS, Prof. Mathew Tsamenyi observed that the success or failure in the execution of local projects largely depends on how finances are managed.

“The whole idea is to be able to instill some financial discipline in what happens in the traditional council. Now if Nananom are going to play key central role in leadership and development of their community, they have to be thinking about managing their finance well” he stated.

As the four-month pilot project ends, there are plans to roll out the training in other parts of the country, starting with the Brong Ahafo and Volta regions later this year.

The ultimate objective is to engage the traditional authorities to regard their subjects as customers in order for people in local communities to “inure loyalty to royalty”.