The Internally Generated Fund (IGF) of the Wenchi Municipal Assembly in the Bono Region has witnessed sharp improvement in 2022, Mr Alexander Obour Damoah, the Municipal Chief Executive has stated.
The Assembly had so far collected GHC231,168.00 representing 22 per cent of its targeted IGF inflow of GH¢1,039,340.33 for the year.
Comparatively, the revenue performance of the Assembly for the first two months of 2021 was 13 per cent of the budgeted revenue.
According to Mr Damoah, the improvement was due to the implementation of the Assembly’s Revenue Improvement Action Plans (RIAP).
These included the reactivation of revenue barriers at the various exit and entry points of the Municipality, effective collaboration with the Police in ensuring compliance with the payment of fees and rates as well as the establishment of the revenue task force for effective and frequent monitoring of revenue activities.
Addressing a staff durbar of the Assembly organised in honour of Madam Justina Owusu-Banahene, the Bono Regional Minister, Mr Damoah said the Assembly also scored 94 per cent during the 2020 District Performance Assessment Tool (DPAT), which enabled the Assembly to obtain additional funds to improve the capacity of staff and more importantly, the living conditions of the people.
Accompanied by some key staff of the Regional Coordinating Council, Mad Owusu-Banahene was in the Municipality to interact with the people, identify and help address their immediate needs and other development challenges in the Municipality.
Mr Damoah commended the staff of the Assembly for their team spirit, cooperation and hard work, saying the “achievements could not have been recorded without the existence of hardworking and committed staff of the Assembly”.
He, however, added the performance of the Assembly as an entity was bedevilled with challenges such as lack of adequate office space to house all staff comfortably, inadequate furniture and equipment to enhance the performance of staff and non-adherence of some staff to sensitive administrative values such as confidentiality.
“The good news is that management has taken cognisance of these issues and has already commenced concrete actions to address them,” he said, and expressed the hope that, “with the needed technical backstopping from your high office, the Assembly will be able to realize its vision to be a model Municipality through excellent service delivery and wealth creation”.
On her part, Mad Owusu-Banahene commended the Assembly for the initiative taken to enhance its IGF inflow and asked the Assembly staff to help intensify public education on the need for Ghanaians to accept and pay the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-levy) for the purpose of development.
She said taxation remained the surest way that the government could mobilise revenue to address the nation’s development challenges, and implored the people to pay their tax and rates.
