Konongo Municipal Assembly Engages Private Sector For Development

The Konongo Municipal Assembly has initiated moves to engage with the private sector under the Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) system to build more infrastructure in the municipality. Some of the projects expected to be embarked upon under the BOT include the construction of a new market and a modern transport terminal at Ekoso, a suburb of Konongo. The completion of the project would help ease congestion at both the Konongo market and the lorry terminal. Presently, traders are forced to sell randomly in the town, a situation that has led to the blockage of walkways and over-crowding in many places. The Chief Executive for the Konongo Municipal Assembly, Alhaji Braimah Boyong, made this known in Konongo after inaugurating two modern places of convenience in Konongo Zongo and Ward Six. The two facilities cost GH�140,000 each to construct and would be controlled by a private developer, Gapo Enterprise, for 30 years before they are handed over to the assembly. Under an agreement, the company would pay a levy every month to the assembly. According to the MCE, such private-public collaboration was one way of complementing government�s effort in providing the needed infrastructure towards enhancing the development of the country. Alhaji Boyong said as part of efforts to ensure the success of the initiative, 25 acres of land had been secured by the assembly for the projects, but he said the assembly was still looking for funds to undertake the works. The rising population of the municipality has led to an overstretch of facilities in the municipality, many of which were constructed in the early 1960s. Some of the existing amenities are weak and pose danger to life. The Chief Executive Officer of Gapo Enterprise, Mr Owusu Tachie, pledged to take good care of the facilities . He said the private sector was ready to do business with the government and called for support from the authorities and other funding agencies.