Challenges associated with the delivery of development projects within the decentralised government system: views of selected stakeholders in the Shama District, Ghana

Abstract

Decentralisation policy is important in ensuring effective delivery of development services at the local level. Governments across the globe utilize decentralised government system as a way of promoting people-centered development. Notwithstanding the value of decentralisation policy, governments struggle with the provision of development services at the local level. This suggests that more efforts need to be made to ensure the realisation of the dividends of decentralisation. However, this cannot be made without an awareness of the challenges local actors face in the delivery of development services. This paper examines the views of stakeholders on the challenges associated with the delivery of development projects within the Ghanaian decentralised government system using the Shama District as a case in order to proffer some measures to improve the situation in the country using the sequential-explanatory mixed method design. Data were collected using interview guide and interview schedule. The study revealed that stakeholder management, involvement of project managers, defining project goals, assigning roles and responsibilities to key officers, and monitoring and evaluation of projects were some of the measures the Assembly had put in place for the delivery of development projects in the district. However, communication was a serious challenge throughout the delivery of development projects in the district. The implications of the key findings for development communication have been highlighted in the study. As part of the recommendations of the study, the Assembly should put in place adequate measures to improve communication throughout the various stages of development service delivery in the district.

Factors Affecting Sustainability of Cocoa Life Project Interventions in Ghana: Views of Beneficiaries in Wassa East District

“…One key factor is effective participation (Admassu et al, 2002;Odoom et al, 2021a). Fowler, as cited in Nalubiri (2010), contends that in pursuing project sustainability, the level of local participation is critical.…”

“…It also provided skill training on savings, loans, investments, bookkeeping, etc. to enable community members better manage their businesses and increase their access to micro-finance (Odoom et al, 2021a). Though some studies have been done on the Project in WED (Mondelez International, 2014;Mondelez International Progress Report, 2015;Odoom, 2021), none of such studies explored the sustainability of the Cocoa Life Project in the District.…”

The Impact of Project Management Tools on Project Results: Evaluation of a Survey Among Managers Leading International Development Projects for four selected Central and Eastern European Donors

“…Since its establishment, official development assistance (ODA) has become a crucial means for development in many poor countries and regions as these cannot often generate domestic savings needed to initiate sustainable growth (Odoom et al, 2021, Parsad and Inaba, 2021, Zuofa and Ochieng, 2014. Bilateral and multilateral donors, global and regional development banks, local governments, public and increasingly also private firms and philanthropes thus finance international development (ID) projects (Bashir et al, 2021, Boakye and Liu, 2017, Burns, 2019 in order to contribute to poverty reduction, improvement of the livelihood of local communities, enhancement of technologies, environmental sustainability etc.…”

Stakeholder perceptions on causes and effects of public project failures in Ghana

“…Several factors are perceived to be responsible for this occurrence. Notable among them are poor stakeholder engagement, high costs, and poor communication among stakeholders (Odoom et al, 2021), the inappropriate location of projects (Damian, 2012), and corruption. Addo (2015) and Bawumia (2014Bawumia ( , 2015 identify factors such as political leadership, planning, finance, human errors, and culture as being responsible for the failures of most public projects in Ghana.…”