In Ghana, almost 70 percent of the population live in rural areas, while the economy depends largely on agriculture for about 44 percent of her Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and over 80 percent of her export revenue.
The slowing down of community initiatives due to negligence of civic duties and responsibilities of both the local and urban residents, have considerably affected development in the rural areas.
It is time the country re-focused and paid more attention to rural development to stem the tide of mass migration of people in the rural areas to urban centres.
The exodus down south has greatly contributed to congestion and high crime rates in the cities.
A careful look into our dailies, gives a clear picture that the major crimes are committed by the youth between the ages of 20 and 40.
These are youth whose energy when carefully directed, can be great assets to the country’s development but they end up in jail for criminal offences.
Many years ago, the late P.K.K Quaidoo then, a businessman and a Member of Parliament, proposed that rural development should fall into two categories.
Namely, a general development which should build a common infrastructure; that is food, housing, education, transport, communication, trade and commerce.
The other was specialized development in the area in which certain zones have to be specialized.
According to Mr. Quaidoo, human beings need food, shelter, clothing and education to preserve life and bring into full use, the latent powers of the body, mind and soul.
If we are not already in this paradigmn, it is high time we considered this and see whether it would shift our development concept into a higher gear.
After all, in the 2004 elections, the major political parties in their manifestoes, promised to tackle some of the issues affecting the rural areas, including accelerated development of feeder roads, rural infrastructure for the transportation and marketing of food and food products.
In our view, this is one major aspect in our developmental processes.
We should also consider adding value to our raw materials such as cocoa, palm oil and fruits, through indigenous agric-businesses.
There is an urgent need for the early completion of the West-African Gas Pipe Line Project to yield the desired benefits, for example in Benin, Togo and Ghana.
It is only through all these projects, that we can touch the lives of the rural people.
The Standard thinks that our rural settlers deserve better, if not more than our city dwellers, because that is where our hard working farmers, who are sustaining the country’s economy reside.
While appealing to government to build more houses, schools, hospitals and create conditions in the rural areas to stem rural-urban migration, we also urge the people in the rural areas to be actively involved in all development projects that take place in their localities.
We are however happy that about US $101.288m of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) funding would be earmarked to directly support some rural development projects.
They include the strengthening of public sector procurement capacity, support for community services as well as strengthening of Rural Financial Services, including the automation and interconnection of the 121 rural banks and savings and loans institutions.
The Rural Development Project is designed to support agricultural and agric-business development under agriculture project.
It is also to strengthen the rural institutions that provide complimentary services.
We hope that when negotiation between the Ghana Millennium Account Project and the MCC materialises, the funds will be properly used to finance the selected priority projects aimed at poverty reduction.
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