Hon. Michael Kpakpo Allotey, the recently elected mayor of Accra, has engaged with important interest groups for the first time in the capital, promising to work toward resetting Accra’s development trajectory and creating a cleaner, safer, and more inclusive city.
Market leaders, transport unions, representatives of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), Traditional Authorities, Civil Society Actors, and Assembly members convened at the Omanye Aba Hall of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) on the second day of the mayor’s term to discuss obstacles and investigate prospects for sustainable urban development.
Mayor Allotey, who spoke at the event, thanked the stakeholders for accepting the invitation and announced plans to implement a 24-hour city operation model. This would include a security and clean-up task force that would help ensure safety and improve sanitation, especially for businesses that operate late into the night.
“We’re bringing 24-hour security and a clean-up task force so that you will be able to work in the evening without fear, and we will create more employment opportunities through this approach,” he said.
The mayor called for unity and action and promised to work closely with all organizations to address issues in a methodical manner.
Additionally, he pledged that “our environment will be very clean, very tidy” in six months, citing the necessity for immediate action because Accra’s dirt had reached an intolerable level.
Hon. Mercy Naa Afrowa Needjan, President of the Greater Accra Markets Association, praised the Mayor for starting the stakeholder engagement so early in his term and called the meeting a much-needed familiarization exercise that gave market leaders a chance to speak with the Mayor face-to-face and provide firsthand reports of conditions on the ground.
Hon. Needjan listed a number of issues that the capital’s markets are dealing with, including increasing street trade, insufficient security, and dilapidated infrastructure in older market buildings.
“Street trading is one of our biggest problems, and some of our markets urgently need renovation. We know the problems can’t be solved in a day, but bit by bit, we believe improvements can be made,” she stated.
Alhaji Alpha Shaban, the secretary general of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), emphasized the long-standing and unbreakable collaboration between GUTA and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and characterized the meeting as a promising first step.
In order to foster consensus and improve the efficacy of solution execution, Alhaji Shaban asked the Assembly to adopt a proactive stance by establishing a technical committee to confirm the issues brought up during the meeting.
Timber Market representatives bemoaned the market’s lengthy walking distances and emphasized the need for better accessibility and infrastructure.
The Ghana Road Coordinating Council’s leaders urged the Assembly to take the lead in standardizing and modernizing the city’s transportation terminals for more effective operations, citing their dismay at the appalling conditions of many of them.
Transport operators, including representatives of the Ghana Property Transport Association and the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), voiced their concerns about how drivers frequently face space constraints as a result of roadside vendors, which causes delays, traffic jams, and higher fuel consumption.
Source: newsthemegh.com