ISSN 1027-0353
African Journal of Political Science ISSN 3461-2165 Vol. 8 (2), pp. 001-016, February, 2014. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
The effectiveness of decentralization policy in Ghana
Godwin Ramous Kwame Egbenya
Department of Sociology, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana. E-mail: [email protected].
Accepted 16 September, 2013
Abstract
This research aims at assessing the effectiveness of decentralization policies in Ghana with a case study conducted at Komenda–Edina–Eguafo–Abaim (KEEA) and Abura–Asebua-Kwamankese (AAK) districts in the Central Region of Ghana, the formulation and implementation of the policies and how they relate to the health, education and water sectors in the country. An interview guide was used to obtain answers from respondents numbering fifty-six. The population for the study comprised all stakeholders concerned with decentralization in the education, health and water sectors in the Central Region of Ghana. They included the Head, Policy Planning, Development partners, Co-ordination Unit - Ministry of Education, Director General - Ghana Education Service, Deputy Director Administration, Ghana Health Service, Managing Director of the Community Water and Sanitation Unit. Frequencies, percentage, and tests of independence were used to analyze the data. From the study, majority of respondents were males who were 40 years and above with high educational background, reflecting males’ dominance over females in influential positions in the country. Some respondents had gone through secondary education or higher. In addition, most of them had been working in the communities and the Sectors for a long time. In sum, responses on the research questions indicate that the decentralization exercise in the two districts has been effective and secondly, the level of integration of the three sectors at the district level has been quite high and met the decentralization objectives.
Key words: Effectiveness, integration, implementation, improvement, resources.