The Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) collected a total of GH¢33.1 million out of a targeted GH¢37.70 million estimated internally generated fund (IGF).

Ebi Bright, the Tema Metropolitan Chief Executive, disclosed this during the assembly’s ordinary meeting, stating that the amount accrued represented 74.10 percent of its targeted IGF.

Bright stated that, on grants, the assembly recorded 34.44 percent of expected receipts, translating into GH¢21.33 million received out of GH¢53.79 million.

She explained that the shortfall in the grant was largely due to delays in the central government’s releases, a challenge faced by metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) across the country.

She said revenue was the lifeblood of local government, noting that without adequate internally generated funds, the assembly could not deliver services, maintain infrastructure, or invest in development.

“This reality underscores why we must strengthen our internally generated funds. We cannot build our development agenda on resources we do not control. What we can control is what we collect ourselves,” she added.

She stated, however, that they do not fully know what they should be collecting, as the assembly does not have a comprehensive, verified database of all properties in the metropolis, all businesses operating within its jurisdiction, all billboards that should be paying fees, and all revenue points that should be contributing to its coffers.

She questioned, “How can we measure leakage when we do not know what 100% looks like? How can we set realistic targets when we are estimating from incomplete data? How can we hold collectors accountable when we cannot verify what should have been collected?”

The MCE noted that was why comprehensive data collection was the single most important initiative in the assembly’s 2026 agenda, adding that until they knew exactly what existed in their 56.5 square kilometres, they would be governing in the dark.

She stressed that every company and business operating within TMA’s administrative area must honour their financial obligations to the assembly, adding that they would be firm but fair and would engage before they enforce.

The mayor announced that the TMA was set to undertake a full digital records management transformation as part of its 2026 Annual Action Plan, noting that the initiative would involve scanning and indexing historical records, introducing an enterprise document management system and creating digital administrative workflows.

She said cloud backup and disaster recovery systems would also be established to preserve institutional memory and reduce dependence on manual files.

Bright said the assembly had already engaged the Public Records and Archives Administration Department to begin archiving physical documents, adding that digitisation would enhance efficiency and accountability.

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