By Rachel Quartey & Rukayatu Musah
Ghana’s decentralisation agenda has received a major boost as Vice President Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee (IMCC) on Decentralisation—its first sitting since the current administration took office.
The meeting brought together key sector ministers to reactivate the IMCC, review the new National Decentralisation Policy and Strategy for 2026–2030, and chart a path toward completing long-pending reforms in health, education, and other critical sectors.
The Vice President described the session as both historic and urgent, stressing that the new administration is committed to placing decentralisation at the centre of national development. She said, “Today offers a moment of renewal and a call to action. This meeting enables us to reaffirm our commitment to placing decentralisation at the heart of development and accountable governance in line with our Constitution.”
Prof. Opoku-Agyemang highlighted Ghana’s long journey towards decentralisation, noting that consistent meetings of the IMCC in the past yielded significant reforms. She said, “Between 2010 and 2016, when this committee met regularly, we resolved some of the most difficult reform challenges—some dating back to 1989.”
However, she cautioned that critical gaps remain, especially in devolving health and education, which she described as vital for improving service delivery and rebuilding public trust. She added, “We cannot deepen local governance or improve service delivery if these large social sectors remain structurally centralised. Completing administrative and functional devolution in health, education, and the road sector must be treated as a national priority.”
The Vice President also welcomed the new 2026–2030 National Decentralisation Policy and Strategy, which provides a roadmap across political, administrative, and fiscal decentralisation, local economic development, and accountability. She noted, “The policy will not implement itself. It requires strong political backing, technical commitment, and full sectoral alignment. Every ministry has a critical role to play.”
Executive Secretary of the IMCC, Dr. Gameli Hoedoafia, praised the Vice President’s leadership on decentralisation. He said, “Decentralisation has become your baby, ma’am. The mandate of the IMCC is very clear under Act 936. It remains the key national institutional mechanism for coordinating decentralisation across sectors, bringing together the ministries central to these reforms.”
Dr. Hoedoafia outlined the purpose of the meeting, highlighting the need to operationalise the IMCC, endorse the 2026–2030 policy, and secure predictable domestic financing. He said, “Today’s meeting is to secure the leadership and decisions necessary to drive a coherent and adequately supported decentralisation agenda for the next five years.”
The high-level meeting sets the stage for renewed collaboration across ministries as the government seeks to accelerate long-stalled reforms and strengthen Ghana’s local governance systems.
