MDAs must set ambitious revenue targets - Minister

Ms Helen Adjoa Ntoso, the Volta Regional Minster , has appealed to Municipal and District assemblies in the Region to set ambitious revenue targets and challenge revenue officers to work towards attaining them.

She threw the challenge at a meeting of Volta Regional Coordinating Council in Ho. Ms Ntoso said revenue collectors were relaxed in the region because the assemblies set low target which were easily met, adding that this made them complacent thus adversely affecting financing of projects in the region.

Ms Ntoso said in the 2013 financial year, a good number of the assemblies exceeded their revenue targets with a few recording less than 50 per cent. North Tongu District Assembly for instance projected 91,536.50 but collected 175,966.55, representing 192.24 per cent.

Ms Ntoso said even with the low targets, some assemblies did not achieve half of the target, described it as worrying and appealed to assemblies to develop proper data and information on the districts and rotate revenue collectors for effectiveness.

Ms Ntoso said though security issues were under control fuel and cocoa smuggling to neighbouring Togo remained a major concern for which a task force had been set up to address.

Mr Kofi Agbo of the Public Investment Division of the Ministry of Finance urged district assemblies in the Region to take advantage of a facility at the Ministry for Private/Public-Partnership projects.

Mr Francis Abotsi, the Volta Regional Environmental Officer, said the sanitation coverage of the region was 16 per cent, two per cent ahead of the national coverage and described it as not good.

He said rural communities in the Kpando and Kadjebi districts could attain open-free-defecation status by December, this year.