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The chapter of the Infrastructure Transparency Initiative (CoST) in Sekondi-Takoradi carried out a working visit to two project sites to check the progress of the works.
The projects are the cassava processing plant at Borkor in Axim and a CHPS complex at Yaabiw in the municipality of Ahanta West, under construction as part of the CoST assurance process.
Both projects were born out of a community needs assessment to help reduce poverty among rural women and improve health care delivery in the host community, respectively.
The Infrastructure Transparency Initiative is an international initiative that works globally with national and subnational governments to improve transparency and value for money in the provision of public infrastructure.
The project strongly believes that by improving access to infrastructure data, stakeholders would be empowered to hold decision makers to account.
This would ultimately lead to better provision of infrastructure, a competitive business environment for the private sector, and improved lives for beneficiaries.
In Axim, the director of municipal coordination, Mr. Daniel Essel, said cassava is a key crop among farmers in the region and investing in the value chain is about investing in local economic growth.
Municipal Planning Officer Mr. Sherrif Rockson said the project would have other ancillary facilities to integrate all sectors of the cassava value chain.
“We hope that this facility will become operational in two months,” he added.
Mr Rockson said the facility would improve the livelihoods of around 300 people and planned to become a key supplier of cassava products, especially “akyeke”, the region’s staple food.
The project has reached a substantial completion point of 95%.
Meanwhile, the well-built CHPS complex in Yaabiw is already operational.
Municipal Planning Officer Malcolm Yendaw said the project served more than three communities with a population of nearly 8,000.
He said it had significantly improved the lives of residents of the municipality.
The director of CoST in Sekondi-Takoradi, Mr. Isaac Aidoo expressed his gratitude to the leadership of the two municipal assemblies for their cooperation during the visit.
He said the CoST assurance process was a way to identify best practices in the provision of public infrastructure and highlight the issues to enable procuring entities to improve the provision of infrastructure.
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