By Deborah Asantewaah SARFO
The revised Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP) guidelines and the new Community Action Planning (CAP) guidelines are set to enhance planning at the local through to the regional level to achieve the nation’s development priorities.
While the MTDP guidelines present district assemblies with a framework to prepare their four-year plan for the country, the CAP guidelines establish a standardised process for developing action plans at the community level.
Supported by the Resilience Against Climate Change (REACH) project, the CAP guideline also empowers local communities by helping to integrate local insights and building a stronger foundation for plans that prepare them for climate impacts.
The newly-launched guidelines are a collaborative effort between the Participation, Accountability and Integrity for a Resilient Democracy (PAIReD) programme and REACH project, both under the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), co-financed by the European Union (EU) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and in partnership the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC).
In a speech read on his behalf, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Daniel Titus-Glover, emphasised that the guidelines provide a structured direction for the nation’s development planning efforts for the next four years of the planning cycle.
He added that establishing clear mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation will ensure that plans are well formulated and effectively implemented, “translating into real benefits for our communities”.
The Programme Director of PAIReD, Astrid Kohl, emphasised their commitment to enhancing development planning budgeting processes in the country in a more integrated and inclusive manner.
She added: “The MTDP can play a pivotal role in building a more resilient and inclusive society, ultimately leading to a more sustainable and equitable future for all Ghanaians”.
Mobilising resources, stability of officers and mainstreaming were some challenges encountered during the preparation of the guidelines, the Director for Development Coordination of the NDPC, Dr. Winfred Nelson noted.
Despite these challenges, he highlighted some successes of the preparation stage, including the outcome of the planning guidelines, teamwork among the various government agencies, and the in-depth understanding of the whole initiative by officers.
However, Dr. Nelson stressed: “We will see the display of the success of the project during the preparation of the actual plans”.
The Project Manager of the European Union (EU) REACH, Matthias Berthold, underscored the significance of the CAP guidelines in bridging the gap between the communities and districts level to capture the developmental needs and vital data of the rural communities.
According to him, the most important need of the communities they engaged was solutions against drought or heavy rainfall patterns, and opportunities for alternative income.
Since the final preparation of MTDP would become the basis of the preparation and allocation of the national budget for implementation from January 2026, the regional minister urged all the “MMDCES and coordinating directors to facilitate and provide the needed resources to ensure the preparation of the MTDP on time”.
