Debates of 1 Jun 2006

MR. SPEAKER
PRAYERS 10 a.m.
CORRECTION OF VOTES 10 a.m.
AND PROCEEDINGS AND 10 a.m.
THE OFFICIAL REPORT 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
Order, order! Correction of Votes and Proceedings of Thursday, 31st May, 2006. Page 1…7 --
Mr. J. Y. Chireh 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, page 7, item 9, the hon. Member for Kwabre East made a Statement. I was in this House yesterday and the hon. Member behind me, hon. Juliana Azumah-Mensah also made a Statement. So there were two Statements made on the issue. It has to reflect. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
You are right, the correction will be made. Page 8 . . . 12.
Mr. A. S. K. Bagbin 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, my attention has been drawn to something at page 7 which I think we would have to look at -- the asking and answering of Questions where the practice now is that only the Question number is put there. Mr. Speaker, I think the Question should be recorded and not only the number.
If you look at page 7 under item 8 - “The following Question was asked of and answered by the Hon. Minister for Public Sector Reforms, hon. Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom”. *531 Mr. Edward K. Salia (Jirapa). That practice, I think, is not informative of the Question that was asked
even from the premises that they said “the following Question was asked . . .” It is only us in the House who will know upon reference what Question number 531 is. But if it is recorded there, there will be no repetition again in future.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
Hon. Member, you are suggesting that the actual Question should have been quoted. I do not know whether that is the normal practice.
Mr. Bagbin 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, that is the normal practice. I think it is now that they are changing it to this practice. The normal practice is that the Question itself is quoted.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
Let us leave this matter to the Leadership; we would resolve it later on. Page 11.
Mr. Kofi Frimpong 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am referring you to page 7, item 9. Mr. Speaker, my name is “Kofi Frimpong” and not “K. O. Frimpong”. It has been written here as “K. O. Frimpong”.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
Page 12 . . . 13.
Mr. P. A. Sarkodie 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on page 13 - “Committee on Environment, Science and Technology” - under “Attendance”. My name “Peter Abum Sakodei,” the “Sarkodie” has been wrongly spelt and should be corrected to read “Sarkodie”.
Mr. Speaker 10:10 a.m.
Page 14 . . . 16. We have the Official Report for Tuesday, 30th May 2006. Hon. Members, let us move on to item 3.
Mr. F. K. Owusu-Adjapong 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to crave your indulgence to allow the Deputy Minister to answer the Questions and other business for the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning on his behalf.
URGENT QUESTION 10:10 a.m.
MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND 10:10 a.m.
ECONOMIC PLANNING 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Kamel 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, is the Deputy Minister aware that under the tenancy agreement between COCOBOD and the
people of Akaa, the then local councils were supposed to be paid one shilling per annum. And if he is aware, whether this has been paid.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I
am not aware of that but I would try and find out.
Mr. Kamel 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, is the hon. Deputy Minister aware that because the project has been lying idle, settler farmers have encroached on the land and this has resulted in constant hostilities between the landowners and the settler farmers?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would only say I am not aware; it has not come to my notice - [Interruptions.] If it does, we would take the necessary action. But it is very true that if land is idle, the natural tendency is for those who want to use the land to get access to it. So we would find out and try to resolve the problem if there is something like that.
Mr. Kamel 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the Deputy Minister what percentage of the land is currently in use. What size of the land is currently in use?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in my Answer, I said that currently, fourteen acres of cocoa and four acres of coffee at the Station are being worked on, and in addition, we are going to develop another five acres. So in effect, we have fourteen plus four which is eighteen; eighteen plus five which is twenty-three as a percentage of five hundred and twenty-nine and that gives you the proportion that is being used currently.
Mr. Kamel 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the hon. Deputy Minister what the Ministry intends to do with the remaining part of the land since the remaining part
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, we would extend those gardens; and as I said, this year, we are actually trying to do about five acres of the land. So we would continue to extend them further.
Mr. E. K. Bandua 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, now that we have been informed that the land is being encroached upon, I would want to find out from the Deputy Minister what action he intends taking to ensure that the land is secured from encroachers.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, to ensure that the land is secured, we have to find out who are the encroachers and under what condition that they encroach the land and once we ascertain that, we would find a way to try and secure it.
Mr. Speaker 10:10 a.m.
Item four - Questions.
ORAL ANSWERS TO 10:10 a.m.
QUESTIONS 10:10 a.m.
MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND 10:10 a.m.
ECONOMIC PLANNING 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Yieleh Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, from the Answer that the hon. Minister has given, there is a shortfall and I would like to know what has happened to that money and when it would be paid.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in
my Answer what I said was that in 2005 we paid all the arrears from 1997 to 2004. That meant that we had to charge this against collections that we had made after 2000. So we were in arrears but to answer the Question directly, we were in arrears for almost seven years and we have paid it; so this for one, we are only in arrears for about a year and we would certainly pay them some time this year.
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, from the Answers that he has given, it is clear that there is a problem with either collecting or transferring this money or the portion that should go to the ceded revenue accounts; there seems to be a problem. Can he tell
us what the problem is?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
now that the hon. Member is telling me that there is a problem there, I will have to find out where that problem is.
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, he does not
want to answer the Question but I would ask it in another way. The other way I want to ask is that the last time the money was released was on May 20, 2005. Today is Thursday and no payment has been made. What account for this delay?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
the hon. Member knows very well that we pay when we have the resources, but then we have to pay arrears of between 1997 and 2000 and that has actually created that backlog. Therefore, there is the need to clear the backlog and then go forward with the payments of the current bill. So the cause of the problem is the fact that we accumulated unpaid arrears.
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the question
I want to ask the hon. Minister from his own Answer is - I am not blaming the Ministry or him as a person. I know that the problem started in 1997. But I am asking, what in his view is creating the problem that the payment is always delayed? And if you collect money which should go to somebody and there is an account to put the money inside, how come he is telling me that he is now paying arrears? It should be in that account - [Interruption] -- yes, so the question I am asking is, what accounts for the delay?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
Mr. Sallas-Mensah 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, it
looks like there is a problem with this ceded revenue accounts because when the District Assemblies Common Fund was introduced, it was supposed to have replaced the ceded revenue which was money being ceded, certain tax types which were being ceded to the District Assemblies for development. Because it was insufficient, the District Assembies Common Fund was introduced; I was at the Consultative Assembly.
So we expect that the Ceded Revenue Law should have been repealed by now. That is why it looks like it was in arrears. So I would like to ask the hon. Minister why they would not go back and do their home work and see - [Interruption] -- that the Ceded Revenue Law be repealed?
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Members, let us
have decorum. Hon. Member for Upper West Akim, if you have any question ask the question.
Mr. Sallas-Mensah 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I do
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
The question?
Mr. Sallas-Mensah 10:20 a.m.
I am just trying to help the hon. Minister to see if a Bill could not be brought to this House to repeal the Ceded Revenue Law since the District Assemblies Common Fund has been introduced.
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member, do you
have any question to ask?
Mr. Sallas-Mensah 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
that is the question, why can a Bill not be introduced into this House repealing the Ceded Revenue Law instead of letting it accrue for a long time before it is paid.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
I think I really do not know why the previous hon. Ministers did not do that but if the hon. Member is suggesting
Mr. E. T. Mensah 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Deputy Chief
Whip, your question, please.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the issue is that there is the need for something to be done about the repeal. If it was not done in 1997, six years after they also assumed office, I think that something has to be done so that this thing is addressed once and for all.
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
That is not a question.
Question No. 468 -- hon. Felix Twumasi- Appiah.
Status of Procurement Entities
Q. 468. Mr. George Kuntu Blankson
(on behalf of Mr. Felix Twumasi-Appiah) asked the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning what the status of the various procurement entities to be established under the Public Procurement Act was.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, there are four levels of Procurement Entities, namely:
Entity Tender Committees;
District Tender Review Boards;
Te n d e r R e v i e w B o a r d s (Ministries and RCCs);
Central Tender Review Board, to be established under the Public
Procurement Act, 2003 (Act
663).
Mr. Speaker, the total Entity Tender Committees defined so far are 1,248 entities. Out of that, 700 have been formed leaving a balance of 548 in various stages of formation.
Mr. Speaker, the Central Tender Review Board has been formed out of the 26 Ministries, 25 have established their review boards. Similarly, 9 regions out of the 10 regions have also established review boards. At the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), 76 out of the 138 have established their review boards leaving 62.
Mr. Speaker, some of the District Entity Committees have not been formed for alleged luck of competent personnel especially with procurement background.
In the interim, Mr. Speaker, the Public Procurement Board is reviewing the situation and will soon come out with guiding principles to facilitate the speedy formation of the entities and the formation of Entity Committees, particularly in the districts.
SUMMARY OF ENTITY TENDER 10:20 a.m.
SUMMARY OF TENDER REVIEW BOARDS 10:20 a.m.
Mr. G. Kuntu-Blankson 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the hon. Deputy Minister, what are the factors inhibiting the formation of the committees in those remaining districts and regions?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, as I said in the Answer, in some cases, it is because there are no qualified people to be represented on the boards. That is one of the reasons.
Mr. Kuntu-Blankson 10:30 a.m.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, since the issue of lack of qualified personnel has been brought before him, what are the arrangements he is making to make sure that all those committees are in place?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, again, I also go back to the Answer. In fact, I said that the procurement board is reviewing the situation, that is actually reviewing whether or not there should be entities at all within certain areas where there are no qualified personnel. If that is the situation, maybe, we may have to have joint entities in contiguous districts; that is something that we are thinking about. It is not well firmed up but we will find a way to try and resolve that problem.
Mr. Kuntu-Blankson 10:30 a.m.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It seems the Answer to my last Question is not clear. I aid he told us that lack of personnel is preventing those districts and regions from putting in place those committees. And I am asking that, since those issues were brought before him what arrangements is his Ministry having in order to curb that situation?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the issue of personnel is a long-term problem facing us all over the country so the solution is not to bring new personnel into those districts. What I am saying is that we have to redefine the entities to ensure that if the two districts or even three districts have one entity and we can get personnel from these three adjoining districts, then we can have the committees formed. So that is the process that we are going through now to get away from the difficulty with personnel in the various districts.
Mr. Lee Ocran 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to know from the hon. Minister who determines the enforcement of the procurement law in the absence of the procurement committees in some districts. I am asking this Question because it is becoming almost impossible for some Members of Parliament to use their common fund with all sorts of people quoting the law, even for purchases worth ¢1 million. You have a storekeeper quoting the law; you have a district finance officer quoting a different law; you have another person quoting another law.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the difficulty that the hon. Member is referring to is inherent in the implementation of the law and therefore over time, that difficulty will be eliminated, once all these entities are in place. But as at now they are not in place and, of course, as he rightly said, they are operating and therefore we may have to find alternative means; I mean a better way of ensuring that they procure.
So that should not - because the law is saying that they should have to have it, and they have not had the thing in place, does not mean that everything should halt for the country to be kept at bay. So I think while we roll this out, we will eventually make sure that every institution gets that entity established.
Mr. Alfred W. G. Abayateye 10:30 a.m.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to - Mr. Speaker, in the Minister's Answer, to quote, he said - “Mr. Speaker, some of the District Entity Committees have not been formed for alleged lack of competent personnel, especially with procurement background.”
My question is this, in almost all the Polytechnics in the country, there is a course - Purchasing and Supply - which is being run. People are graduating with Higher National Diplomas (HNDs) in this field. What is their fate? If the people are there but we are saying for lack of competent people to get this - what is the fate of the HND Purchasing and Supply graduates in the district-entity committees as we are talking about lack of competent
personnel?
My Question to him is, since there are HND graduates of purchasing and supply in almost all the Polytechnics in the country, and yet his Answer says “lack of competent personnel”, what is in store for them?
Prof. Gyan-Baffour 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for that information. We will try and find out how the Procurement Board can ensure that those people are hired to do the job. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, thank you very much for appearing to answer these Questions. You are discharged. Hon. Members, let us move now to item 6.
BILLS - SECOND READING 10:30 a.m.
MOTIONS 10:40 a.m.
-- 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Alfred W. G. Abayateye (NDC -- Sege) 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to second the motion and in doing so, I would like to call the House's attention to the fact that, this Odaw River Project is in three phases, three lots. We have been able to carry on the first and the second and this is the final lot. In the course of our deliberations, we would realize that if we are able to get the place really in order, it can be a source of attraction for tourists and in a way, we can raise some revenue.
We again realize that because of the slowness of the work, in fact, it is really an eyesore, the stench from the place is such that even -- it is tough. Therefore, we have discussed that we need to get this issue to go through fast, get resources and get the place in order so that the country will be the best beneficiary. In doing so, I would like to plead with the House to wholly approve this Agreement for the work to be done in the shortest time to get the place clean and in good order.
Question proposed.
Alhaji Seidu Amadu (NDC -- Yapei/ Kusawgu) 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, indeed, this is a very good loan, and I rise to speak in support of the motion to approve the loan to carry on activities as identified under LOT 3 as spelt out in the Committee's Report on the main Loan Agreement.
Mr. Speaker, I, however, find it a little bit disturbing; if we look at the memo accompanying the Loan Agreement, Cabinet, in its wisdom, expresses a lot of desire to develop the Odaw Channel into a waterway. Unfortunately, if we look at the Committee's Report, under paragraph 2, we are told that plans that were put in place in the past to address, in a comprehensive manner, the Odaw and its tributaries have rather been phased out as a result of the funding constraints.
I thought that Cabinet, in its wisdom, having identified the need to redevelop the Odaw into a waterway, would have also told us plans that they have put in place to raise the necessary funding to really carry their wisdom into reality. Twenty-four million dollars, Mr. Speaker, I do not think it is that big money. If we were to go to Europe and several other countries, most cities have been beautified because of the waterways that they have.
Mr. Speaker, again, if we look at the source of Odaw, it takes its source all the way from the Akwapim mountain ranges; and to be able to address the issue of flooding in Accra, we really need to address the primary drains. That is why I want to appeal to the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment to do everything within its capability to ensure that the necessary funding is generated to be able to implement this project in a more comprehensive manner.
Mr. Speaker, most residents living along the Odaw channel continue to use the Odaw as a receptacle for the disposal of both liquid and solid waste. And it is affecting the Korle Lagoon Ecological Restoration Project because most of the mechanics who have located along the channel continue to discharge their effluence and affluence into the channel.
Mr. Speaker, if we go to North Kaneshie which also shares a significant proportion of the tributary that feed into the Odaw, there are so many industries, so many factories and each one of them also discharges its effluence and affluence into the Odaw; and this affects not only the marine life but also the sanity of the Project.
I think that the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment need to come out with the appropriate laws to address the issue of waster discharge into the Odaw. Because the Government cannot continue to sink millions upon millions of dollars and euros, as the case might be, Mr. Speaker, to allow others to continue to pollute the system. If you are driving along any of the channels in Accra, the stench that greets you, the siltation that awaits you, I think it is an eyesore.
Mr. Speaker, finally, I would also want to appeal to Government to reconsider the possibility of relocating primary drains management to the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing because that Ministry has the full capacity. They have the Hydrological Department at that Ministry which is responsible for monitoring all rivers, rivulets and streams in this country. And so I think that this particular function should rest squarely under the ambit of that Ministry.
Now that “Environment” has been hacked off and added to the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr. Speaker, I think that we have given so much to that Ministry and I wonder how the Ministry would have the capacity to address all these issues. I think the hon. Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing is here; he may need to put up a memorandum to Cabinet to address these issues so that that portion of primary and secondary drains can be handled by that Ministry. But I think this should probably be handled by the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing.
With this, Mr. Speaker, I lend my support to the motion.
Mr. J. D. Mahama 10:50 a.m.
(NDC - Bole/ Bamboi): Mr. Speaker, the Odaw Drain has been a source of grief for many residents of the city. Normally, during the rainy season, it is one of the major streams that regularly overflows its banks and causes flooding in places like Alajo and other areas that lie in valleys in this city. But Mr. Speaker, I want to place as
RESOLUTION 11 a.m.
Mr. Owusu-Adjapong 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in the absence of the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, since this matter is closely related to the Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing, I want to seek your indulgence to allow him to move the motion on behalf of his colleague Minister.
to be able to carry out some of the very critical work that that Ministry used to do, and do the designs that are necessary to protect our environment.
Mr. Speaker, let us rethink this project properly. I support the motion but I wish to place my reservations on record.
Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing (Mr. Hackman Owusu- Agyemang) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would just like to assure my son-in-law, the distinguished Member of Parliament for Bole/Bamboi, that these considera-tions were indeed well captured in the Cabinet discussions on this issue hence the letter from the Cabinet Secretariat specifically said that the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment was to do this work in close collaboration with the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing and the Ministry responsible for Environment.
Let me hasten to add that the Ministry responsible for Environment was really not operational as such. They were the regulatory body and as far as the primary drains were concerned, responsibility lay with our Ministry. In this particular case, for some strange reason which we met, because it is part of the Urban 1, 2, 3, 4 Project, it is being sort of housed in the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment where maybe the in-house capacity is not there. But I believe that we would work closely together as a nation to move it forward.
As far as de-silting is concerned, his geography is correct; I do not know whether he had an ‘A' or ‘B', but whatever it is we are taking care of it. Annually, we do this de-silting and it is only yesterday that we were expecting some money to de-silt.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
But the hon. Deputy Minister is here; he should represent the Minister.
Mr. Owusu-Adjapong 11 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning (Prof. G. Y. Gyan- Baffour (on behalf of the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning): Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that
WHEREAS by the provisions of article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335), the terms and conditions of any loan raised by the Government of Ghana on behalf of itself or any public institution or authority shall not come into operation unless the said terms and conditions have been laid before Parliament and approved by Parliament by a Resolution supported by the votes of a majority of all Members of Parliament;
PURSUANT to the provisions of the said article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335) and at the request of the Government of Ghana acting through the Minister responsible for Finance, there has been laid before Parliament the terms and conditions of the Buyer Credit Facility between the Republic of Ghana and Fortis Bank (Nederland) N.V. for an amount of E5,199,017.00 for the Odaw Drainage Improvement Works Exetnsion (LOT 3).
THIS HONOURABLE HOUSE 11 a.m.
H E R E B Y R E S O LV E S A S 11 a.m.
Mr. Agyei-Addo 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion.
Question put and motion agreed to.
Resolved accordingly.
Loan Agreement between GOG and the OPEC Fund for International
Development
Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Kwadwo Agyei-Addo) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House adopts the Report of the Finance Committee on the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and the OPEC Fund for International Development for an amount of US$8.5 million for the Phase II of the Rural Health Services Project. In so doing, I would want to present the Report of the Committee.
Mr. Speaker, with your concurrence, I would read the “Introduction” and the “Conclusion” and request that you ask the Hansard Deparment to capture the whole Report as having been read.
1.0 Introduction
The Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and the OPEC Fund for International Development was laid in the House on Thursday, 18th May 2006 and referred to the Finance Committee for consideration and report in accordance
with article 181 of the 1992 Constitution and the Standing Orders of the House.
To consider the loan document, the Committee met with the Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, hon. Dr. A Akoto Osei, officials from the Ministry of Health as well as Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and reports as follows: 2.0 Background
Hon. Members will recall that in 1997, OPEC Fund granted a loan facility of six million, five hundred and fifty thousand dollars (US$6,550,000) to the Republic of Ghana for the first phase of the Rural Health Services Project.
The phase 2 project involved:
the construction of sixteen (16) health centres countrywide, with vehicles and motorbikes for outreach services;
the upgrading of four (4) health centres to 30-Bed Community/ District Hospitals and the provision of four (4) sets of mobile dental facilities.
The 1997 project was completed in December 2004. However, in order to extend the rural health delivery process, the Republic of Ghana requested the OPEC Fund to provide another loan of US$8,500,000 to finance the Second Phase of the project.
3.0 Scope of the Project
The scope of the project is as follows:
Civil works, comprising the construction of three thirty-bed community hospitals and twenty health centres with associated staff
houses;
Purchase and installation of equ ipment , compr i s ing the acquisition of four-wheel drive vehicles, motorbikes and the provision of operating theatres, g e n e r a t o r s a n d l a b o r a t o r y equipment;
Acquisition of four-wheel drive vehicles with enough space to transport teams and equipment for the provision of outreach (mobile) dental heath care;
Training and technical assistance which involves the funding of the training needs of selected health personnel, administrative and monitoring staff of the project; Project Implementation Unit (PIU), embracing the coverage of the PIU's operating cost, staff salaries, office equipment, and vehicles, including the provision of the services of an auditor to undertake periodic audit of the project's account.
4.0 Terms of the Project
Loan Amount
-- US$8,500,000
Grace Period -- 5 years
Loan Maturity Period -- 20 years
Interest Rate -- 1 per cent
Service Charge -- 1 per cent.
5.0 Observations
The Committee observed that the
Mr. Moses A. Asaga (NDC -- Nabdan) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to second the motion and to
ask all hon. Members to support this important facility. Unlike other controversial agreements like the Ghana International Airways, this one is very relevant to our development.
Mr. Speaker, as we see from the words, “OPEC Fund”, this is a very resourceful financial institution and I think that the more we do businesses with them, especially in the social sector, the more we would get better facilities from them.
OPEC Fund had always supported Ghana since the National Democratic Congress (NDC) period and I am very happy that even under this Government the OPEC Fund is still with us.
With these few words, I second the motion and I think debate does not need to continue.
Question put and motion agreed to.

The Committee further observed that a number of Communities and Districts would be benefiting from this project. Attached as Appendix 1 is the list of the districts.

The Committee noted that with the provision of these facilities, certain diseases associated with these districts would be effectively checked and reduced

thereby improving the health of these communities.

The Committee was informed that with the training and technical assistance under this project, the health personnel would benefit immensely thereby enhancing service delivery in these communities.

6.0 Conclusion

In view of the importance of the project to the health care delivery system in the country, the Committee respectfully invites the House to adopt its report and approve by resolution, the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and the OPEC Fund for International Development for an amount of US$8.5 million for the financing of Phase II of the Rural Health Services Project in accordance with article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335).
APPENDIX I 11 a.m.
OPEC FUND - RURAL HEALTH 11 a.m.
SERVICES PROJECT - PHASE II 11 a.m.
PROPOSED PROJECT SITES 11 a.m.
COMMUNITY HOSPITALS 11 a.m.
REGIONS DISTRICT 11 a.m.
CONSTRUCTION OF HEALTH 11 a.m.
CENTRES 11 a.m.
Prof. Gyan-Baffour (on behalf of the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that
WHEREAS by the provisions of article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335), the terms and conditions of any loan raised by the Government of Ghana on behalf of itself or any public institution or authority shall not come into operation unless the said terms and conditions have been laid before Parliament and approved by Parliament by a Resolution supported by the votes of a majority of all Members of Parliament;
PURSUANT to the provisions of the said article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335) and at the request of the Government of Ghana acting through the Minister responsible for Finance, there has been laid before Parliament the terms and conditions of the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and the OPEC Fund for International Develop-ment for an amount of US$8.5 million for the Phase II of the Rural Health Services Project.
THIS HONOURABLE HOUSE 11 a.m.
H E R E B Y R E S O LV E S A S 11 a.m.
Mr. Agyei-Addo 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I second the motion.
Question put and motion agreed to.
Suspension of Standing Order 80 (1)
Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Agyei-Addo) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that notwithstanding the provisions of Standing Order 80 (1) which require that no motion shall be debated until at least forty-eight hours have elapsed between the date on which notice of the motion is given and the date on which the motion is moved, the motion for the adoption of the Report of the Joint Committee on Finance and Works and Housing on the
In so doing I would want to present the Report of the Joint Committee. Mr. Speaker, with your permission, I would want to read the “Introduction” and the “Conclusion” as I believe the Report was distributed sometime ago so hon. Members might have had time to read it.
1.0 Introduction
The Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and the KBC Bank of Belgium and the Government of Belgium was laid in the House on Friday, 19th May 2006 and referred to the Joint Committee on Finance and Works and Housing for consideration and report in accordance with the Constitution and the Standing Orders of the House.
To consider the loan, the Committee met with the Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing, hon. Hackman Owusu-Agyemang, his Deputy Minister, hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah and the Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Dr A. Akoto Osei and officials from the Ministries of Water Resources, Works and Housing and Finance and Economic Planning and reports as follows:
2.0 Background
Koforidua, the regional capital of the Eastern Region and its adjoining seven communities of Asokore, Jumapo, Koforidua Ada, Okorase, Oyoko, Effiduase, and Suhyen are supplied with treated water by the Ghana Water Company from river Densu as the main source of raw water. Two other sources from the springs, Suhyen and Okume serve to complement that from river Densu. A concrete weir across river Densu at Bebianiha provides additional storage capacity for treatment during the dry season.
Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Agyei-Addo) 11 a.m.


Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and KBC Bank of Belgium and the Government of Belgium for an amount of E38,739,482.00 for the Koforidua Water Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion Project may be moved today.
Mr. S. Sallas-Mensah (NDC - Upper West Akim) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion.
Question put and motion agreed to.
Resolved accordingly.
Loan Agreement between the GOG and KBC Bank of Belgium and
Government of Belgium
Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Agyei-Addo) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House adopts the Report of the Joint Committee on Finance and Works and Housing on the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and KBC Bank of Belgium and the Government of Belgium for an amount of E38,739,482.00 for the Koforidua Water Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion Project.
Due to the unreliability of flows from river Densu, coupled with increasing population, the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) has been unable to meet the growing demand in the distribution area of the Koforidua Water Works.
In order to provide a more reliable and permanent solution to meet the long-term needs of the municipality and adjourning towns, studies were undertaken and the following recommendations were made:
Construction of a dam on river Densu upstream of the present weir to serve as a regulating reservoir;
Construction of a dam on river Okume to also serve as a regulating reservoir;
Construction of a dam on river Nsukaw, a tributary of river Densu to serve as a regulating reservoir;
Abstraction of raw water from the Volta Lake.
Of all the alternatives proposed, abstraction of water from the Volta Lake was considered feasible in view of its design.
Hon. Members will recall that a request for the execution of the Koforidua Water Project on Turn-key basis to construct a new Water Treatment Plant based on raw water from the Volta Lake was submitted by Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) in 1999.
Feasibility study and preliminary design proposals for executing the project on turn-key basis was submitted by Messrs SADE of France which was vetted and approved for implementation at a fixed contract sum of US$40 million (forty million US dollars). Funding was to be provided from French Government
Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Agyei-Addo) 11 a.m.


sources (COFACE).

In 2002, Messrs SADE indicated that funding for the project from the French Government had become difficult due to the country's HIPC status. As a result, the project could not be implemented.

In December 2004, other companies showed interest in the project and thus Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing (MWRWH) decided to invite all the companies to submit proposals alongside Messrs SADE.

At the close of tendering, Messrs Denys/Conduites et Enterprise and Messrs SADE submitted proposals.

At the beginning of this year, alternative financing was sought from the Belgian Government Foreign Aid Department. The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP) has since indicated that the terms of financing proposed under the Belgian funding sources by Messrs Denys B.V. for the project meets Government of Ghana's conditions for concessionary financing. The Belgian Government has also confirmed its support for the project which is to be financed on concessionary terms by the Belgian Foreign Aid Department (FINEXPO) and the KBC Bank of Brussels, Belgium.

The project after completion is expected to meet the year 2025 water demand for the project area.

3.0 Project Summary

In order to provide Koforidua municipality and its environs with a reliable and consistent water supply system based on the design horizon of 2025, the project is divided into a basic scope of works and two options, mainly to

allow a better financing flexibility: The basic scope of work is to supply drinking water to a population of 222,500 in the Koforidua municipality including Jumapo, Ada, Effiduase, Asokore, Okorase, Oyoko, and Suhyen and villages along the main road between the Volta Lake, a new treatment plant at Oterkporlu, boosters and transport pipelines, local reservoirs and distribution network with standpipes.

The new Oterkporlu treatment plant will consist of conventional treatment: coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, rapid gravity filtration and disinfection chlorination. After storage in the clear water reservoir, distribution pumps will distribute the drinking water to the different sub-systems.

Two options will cover an additional population of approximately 75,000 mainly located in Jumapo, Suhyen, Kofikrom, Kukurantumi, New and Old Tafo, Maase and Osiem. These options include pumping station, transport pipelines, local reservoirs and distribution networks and standpipes.

4.0 Terms and Conditions

Total Contract Amount

-- €38,739,482.00

A.

B.
KBC BANK LOAN 11 a.m.
BELGIAN GOVERNMENT LOAN 11 a.m.
Alhaji Seidu Amadu (NDC -- Yapei- Kusawgu) 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of the motion to approve this loan agreement to execute work relating to the rehabilitation and expansion of the Koforidua water system.
Mr. Speaker, the Koforidua water
system has a very interesting history and the search for a formidable solution to the perennial water shortage that continues to afflict the good people of the municipality has been a very long one.
Mr. Speaker, in the early 1990s up to
the late 1990s various attempts were made to find a lasting solution to this problem facing the Koforidua municipality. One of them was the issue of the six-town water system which today is being implemented. The second proposal was to consider even lifting water from Kpong through the Akwapim Ridge to Koforidua. That proposal was ably considered under a Spanish loan facility that we were negotiating. I know that proposal was technically feasible, but the amount involved was such that we could not raise the necessary funding to implement the project.
Mr. Speaker, this final option that today we are meeting to approve was started by the National Democratic Congress (NDC), and the efforts that were made nearly cost the then Minister his job. Hon. Adjei-Mensah, the then Member of Parliament for Techiman North who was at the forefront of this arrangement, came under a lot of attacks and a lot of criticism. Eventually, efforts had to be suspended and finally a French company, called SADE decided to undertake the project on a turnkey basis.
Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, at the time that the project should have been implemented the adoption of the Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative also affected the interest of the French company in this project and eventually the project had to be suspended.
Today, we are happy that the Government has been able to generate the necessary resources to implement this project. Mr. Speaker, I only hope and pray that this project would address this perennial water problem that has been afflicting the people of the municipality.
rose
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Hon. Member for Ahafo
Ano South, do you have a point of order?
Mr. Manu 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a
point of information. I heard him say that the creation of something was started by the NDC. Did he say the creation of the world was started by the NDC? Did I hear him right?
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
You have no point of
order; let him continue.
Alhaji Amadu 11:10 a.m.
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one other problem that is associated with the Koforidua Water System is the issue of old pipelines. I hope that under this project the distribution network would be looked at so that at the end of the day when the project is implemented the designed objectives should be achieved.
Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion Project in accordance with article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335).
Respectfully submitted.
Mr. Samuel Johnfia (NPP - Ahanta
West): Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion and in so doing I urge hon. Colleagues to support the Report wholeheartedly.
Mr. Speaker, water has no substitute, and water is life. Therefore, any move by the Government to improve the water situation in the country should be applauded. The project, when completed, would improve the water situation in Koforidua and its environs.
It is noted that Government is putting in more effort to improve the water situation in the urban areas and it is recommended highly. But my plea to the Government is that whilst improving the water situation in the urban areas, efforts should also be made to improve the water situation in the rural areas.
Alhaji Amadu 11:10 a.m.


With this, Mr. Speaker, I support the motion.

Mr. Stephen Amoanor Kwao (NDC

- Upper Manya): Mr. Speaker, I also like to commend the Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing for having seen this project through finally. I think, related to this project, in May 2001 I asked a Question specifically on the Koforidua Water Project and the Question was “How soon the proposed Koforidua Water Project would take off and whether the people of Asesewa and the surrounding villages in the Upper Manya constituency would also start to benefit from the project”.

The Minister then came up with an

Answer and he assured the House that definitely anytime the project took off, the people of Asesewa alongside about thirty- one other villages would benefit from the project. Today, when you look at the Committee's Report, the “Observations”, it says that the Committee observed that communities to benefit from the project include villages between Oterkpolu Water Treatment Plant and water estates - Kponyarkorpe, Avalajikorpe, Kasakorpe, Bukonor and Gatsunya.

Also, villages along the transmission pipeline to Koforidua and surrounding areas, that is Oterkporlu, Pleyo, Odorkrom, Huhunya, Nkurankan, Aboabo, Kofidua, Koforidua Ada, Effiduase, Densu Dam, Ketenkye, Asokore and Oyoko will benefit from the project when it is completed.

Mr. Speaker, it looks as if even villages
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Order! Order!
Mr. Kwao 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, my contention
is that if even villages that are beyond the project site are going to benefit then what about villages and areas like Asesewa which are around and close to the area? I think the Ministry will have to revisit the project scope and then include those villages and towns like Asesewa, Anyaboni, Mensah Dawa, Asasihene and those villages that are along the project and close to Oterkpolu where the Water Treatment Plant will be sited.
Alhaji Sumani Abukari (NDC -
Tamale North): Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the motion on the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I shared the unfortunate experience of the people of Koforidua area when I served as State Attorney for Koforidua for two years in the early 1970s -- [Interruption] -- I was state attorney at his place for two years. And Mr. Speaker, honestly, I will say that one of the reasons I left the place was because of the perennial water shortage. It was so bad that I had to be running to Accra almost every weekend to wash myself properly and to carry some water back in jerry cans. So Mr. Speaker, I am really gladdened and I am happy for the people of that area, that at long last this project is coming on board and that as soon as possible they are going to have potable water in the area.

Capt. Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey (retd) -- rose -
Mr. Speaker 11:20 a.m.
Hon. Member for
Berekum, do you have a point of order?
Capt. Effah-Dartey (retd): Yes, Mr.

Question put and motion agreed to.

GOG/KBC Bank and Government of Belgium Loan Agreement

Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning (Prof. Gyan- Baffour) Mr. Speaker, I beg to move that,

WHEREAS by the provisions of article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335), the terms and conditions of any loan raised by the Government of Ghana on behalf of itself or any public institution or authority shall not come into operation unless the said terms and conditions have been laid before Parliament and approved by Parliament by a Resolution supported by the votes of a majority of all Members of Parliament;

PURSUANT to the provisions of the said article 181 of the Constitution and section 7 of the Loans Act, 1970 (Act 335) and at the request of the Government of Ghana acting through the Minister responsible for Finance, there has been laid before Parliament the terms and conditions

of the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and KBC Bank of Belgium and the Government of Belgium for an amount of €38,739,482.00 for the Koforidua Water Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion Project.
THIS HONOURABLE HOUSE 11:20 a.m.
H E R E B Y R E S O LV E S A S 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Sumani Abukari 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion.
Question put and motion agreed to.
Resolved accordingly.
Ghana Water Company Ltd/Messrs BIWATER BV Contract Agreement
Vice Chairman of the Finance Committee (Mr. Agyei-Addo) (on behalf of the Chairman of the Committee): Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this House adopts the Report of the Finance Committee on the request for tax exemption amounting to E7, 983,892.00 on equipment and materials to be imported or purchased locally and the waiver of income tax for the expatriate staff for the execution of the Tamale Water Treatment Plant Rehabilitation and Expansion Works as stated in the contract document signed between Ghana Water Company Limited and Messrs Biwater BV.
Mr. Speaker, in so doing I would want to present the Report of the Finance Committee and would want to, with your concurrence, read the “Introduction” and the “Conclusion” and request the Hansard Department to capture the full Report as having been read in this House. 1.0 Introduction
The above exemption was laid in the House on Thursday, 18th May 2006 and referred to the Finance Committee for consideration and report in accordance with the 1992 Constitution and the Standing Orders of the House.

To consider the exemption the Committee met with the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, hon. (Dr.) A. Akoto Osei and officials from the Ministries of Water Resource, Works and Housing and Finance and Economic Planning and discussed as follows:

2.0 Background

Hon. Members may recall that on November 17, 2005 Cabinet considered and approved the Grant and Loan Agreement in the sum of €45,000,000.00 for the Tamale Water Treatment Plant Rehabilitation and Expansion Project.

On 15th December, 2005 Parliament approved by resolution, this Loan Agreement covering the amount of €22,500,000.00 between the Government of Ghana and the ING Bank of The Netherlands.

The water supply for Tamale and the surrounding areas was established in 1972 by a construction of an intake on the White Volta which is 37 kilometres north-west of Tamale. Since its construction, the number of inhabitants has grown from 120,000 to about 500,000 people.

In 1994, the Ghana Water and Sewerage Corporation, under World Bank financing, initiated the Tamale Water Supply Expansion study. The study aims at expanding in two stages, the raw water intake capacity, the treatment plant capacity, and the water distribution network.

Attempts have been made to supply water to these areas but due to funding problems, these attempts have not been executed.

Ghana Water Company Limited is

currently rationing water to equitably distribute the water available. There is the supply demand gap which actually necessitates the need for capacity expansion of the water system. Presently, the pumps are being rehabilitated as a stop gap measure, whilst awaiting the intended rehabilitation and expansion of the system.

As a result of this, the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing and the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) Board of Directors agreed that the offer should be awarded to another contractor.

Messrs BIWATER subsequently expressed interest in the project and submitted revised proposals at an estimated cost of €45 million to Ghana Water Company Limited for consideration.

The Netherlands Government also expressed support for the project which is to be financed on concessionary terms by FMO ORET of The Netherlands.

3.0 Observations

The Committee observed that the credit will support the efforts of the Government, to significantly increase the water supply coverage in Tamale, and its environs. It will also improve health and socio- economic conditions, as well as poverty reduction.

The Committee noted that extensive rehabi l i t a t ion works which was undertaken relating to the replacement of electromechanical equipment under the Water Supply Rehabilitation Project (WSRP) was completed in 1999. The capacity of the Dalun treatment plant was also increased from 11,250 m3/day (2.5 million gallons per day) to 19,350 m3/day (4.3 million gallons per day).

The Committee observed that the

project seeks to rehabilitate the existing plant and construct a new conventional treatment plant with capacity of 22,0000 m3/day.

Construction of reservoirs and associated transmission and distribution pipelines would also be executed under the project.

The Committee also observed that the population of Tamale has increased and all the villages along the main transmission area fetch water from the main line and as a result the water supply in Tamale has become inadequate.

The Committee noted that clause 14.1 of the Contract Agreement signed between the Ghana Water Company Limited and Messrs BIWATER BV of The Netherlands indicated that the contractor's equipment and materials for the project shall be exempted from the payment of tax.

The assessment of tax liability is attached as Appendix I.

The Committee observed that most Loan Agreements signed between the Government of Ghana and other financial institutions request the Government of Ghana to exempt contract executing companies from the payment of corporate tax. It is therefore the recommendation of the Committee that in future, Ministers should try as much as possible not to sign Agreements that would require the exemption of corporate taxes since the Internal Revenue Act frowns on such practices.

4.0 Project Cost and Financing Plan

The total cost of the project is forty-five million Euros (€45,000,000.00)

The financing scenario is as follows:

Netherlands Grant

-- €22,500,000.00

ING Bank Loan
APPENDIX 11:20 a.m.
ASSESSMENT OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
BIWATER CONTRACTING BV 11:20 a.m.
MATERIAL AND EQUIPMENT 11:20 a.m.
DESCRIPTION 11:20 a.m.
ASSESSMENT OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
BIWATER CONTRACTING BV 11:20 a.m.
SUMMARY FOR TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
ASSESSMENT OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
BIWATER CONTRACTING BV 11:20 a.m.
SUMMARY OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
SUMMARY OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
ASSESSMENT OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
BIWATER CONTRACTING BV 11:20 a.m.
GRAND TOTAL SUMMARY OF DUTIES 11:20 a.m.
AND TAX LIABILITIES 11:20 a.m.
SUMMARY OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
ASSESSMENT OF TAX LIABILITY 11:20 a.m.
BIWATER CONTRACTING BV 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Moses A. Asaga (NDC - Nabdam) 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, this is just on preliminary issues.
We did mention in the motion, a waiver of income tax from the earnings of expatriates and I do not know whether this particular rendition -- In our double taxation laws, do we have to look at country by country? Do we have a double taxation and therefore there could be a waiver? I do not know if the Minister for Foreign Affairs or the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning is here so that they clarify this and let us know from that country, which has not even been mentioned -- It is just talking of BIWATER BV; I do not know where they are coming from.
I think we need that clarification so that we get the standard for the Finance Committee. When it comes to incomes earned by expatriates, should it be based on the double taxation system: or what is it that we are waiving?
Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC - Tamale South) 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion
and to urge all hon. Members to support it. But I refer to page 1 of your Committee's Report and I would like to make some corrections there - second paragraph. I do not know whether we have two Ministers for Finance and Economic Planning.
It is reported in the second paragraph, second line that the Committee met with the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, hon. Dr. Akoto Osei - I think it is important that we correct it to Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning since mention is made of Dr. A. Akoto Osei on page 1 of the Report.
Mr. Speaker, in supporting it, I would like to draw your attention to page 3 of the Committee's Report and to emphasise that it is important that this House respects its own rules. It appears that the Internal Revenue Act does not allow for a waiver of corporate tax, but consistently we come to this House with prior agreements signed and then urge this House to give its approval to them. The Committee has carefully observed that and I think it is important that this House demonstrates a commitment to respect Acts that are
Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC - Tamale South) 11:30 a.m.
passed by this honourable House.
Secondly, Mr. Speaker, in referring to the memorandum that accompanied this particular motion, which came from Cabinet, we are told -- and that one I expect some clarification from the hon. Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing. We are told in the memorandum that Ghana Water Company Limited and Messrs BIWATER signed a contract agreement dated 17 October 2005. Subsequently, we are told that Cabinet at its meeting on November 17, 2005 and then Parliament at a meeting on December 15 - I would want to know which one comes first and which ought to come first.
Would we have Ghana Water Company enter into a contractual agreement binding us to it and then come to Parliament even before the important body like Cabinet looks at it? If for instance, Ghana Water Company Limited goes into a contract and agrees on some figures that this House finally does not approve of, what will be the consequence? So I will need some clarification as to which of them ought to have come first.

Mr. Speaker, I think there is no doubt that this is a giant step to relieve the people of Tamale and its surrounding areas of the acute and perennial shortage of water. It is not acute only in Tamale; I am sure communities in Swedru, Cape Coast, Mankessim and Koforidua suffer the same fate; and I hesitate to say that about 40 per cent or less Ghanaians do not have access to potable drinking water and efforts directed at ensuring that we have access to water is worth appreciating.

Nonetheless, Mr. Speaker, one of the worrying issues about the Tamale project is that at the time that this honourable House had the opportunity to look at the loan agreement, we were not told the scope of work. Unlike Koforidua where the hon. Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing is privileged to come from, we are told -- If I want to make a comparison, on page 3, item 3 of his summary, he indicated that for the Koforidua municipality areas like Jumapo, Ada, Effiduase and Asokore are to benefit.

But in the case of the Tamale Water Project, we do not know the specific scope of work, which communities are to benefit. If you go to Tamale North, maybe, for an adjoining area like Dalogyilli which is very close to the former Northern Regional Minister's area, we would want to know whether the extension of water would reach the area in Dalogyilli or

GRAND TOTAL DUTY = €7,983,892.00

Respectfully submitted.
Mr. E. K. D. Adjaho (NDC - Avenor/Ave) 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion. This is a very important project. However, I think that we have to do some small work on the rendition in terms of the motion.
Mr. Speaker, we are talking about €7,983,892.00 and that is the figure for import duty - if the items are imported from outside the country. Mr. Speaker, it is important to put on record that if we buy some of the items locally the figure that we will get will be less than the €7,983,892.00 that we have got there. For example, we will not pay tolls levy, we will not pay import duty, and we will not pay IDEF.

P. 83

P. 84

P. 84

P. 84

Tax Liability/Summary

Chieko on the Salaga road or Shishegu as it relates to Tamale North, or even within Choggunayilli and surrounding areas.

We need to know the scope of work so that the people of Tamale will know what to expect from this project and not just to concentrate it, maybe in Tamale Central as per my good friend, lawyer Inusah's area. I think that the scope of work has not been brought to the attention of this House.

In order for us to appreciate that we have value for money in investing as much forty-five million euros in this project, I think it is important that the Ministry clarifies the issue for us to know that the people of Tamale can have some good expectation, that many of the communities adjoining Tamale and not just Tamale Central within the market area, will be beneficiaries of this important facility.

Mr. Speaker, related to this is that

even as we await the final take-off and completion of this project, the people of Tamale must be assured of some access to water in the meantime. This is because just a week ago, I was in the constituency and the major complaint of the people living within and around Tamale is about water. Whether you go to Nyohili or you go to Choggu or Blupela, the complaint is that they do not have water.

Mr. Speaker, it is important for me to emphasise that even within Tamale it is kind of peri-urban. You have some communities that are purely rural who do not even depend on potable pipe-borne water; they rely on dam water and even that they cannot get to drink.

If you take a community like Zopogu or even Blupela, which is within Tamale Central, they depend solely on the Blupela dam which is as clean as the cloth that the hon. Member of Parliament over there is wearing. That is the kind of water that people in Tamale drink. It is that

bad. So I am not surprised that guinea- worm infestation is still a problem within Northern Region, and even in Tamale.

Only a few weeks ago, I had discussion with some workers of Christ Faith Church and World Vision International and they complained about even our approach to dealing with rural water. So I would urge the hon. Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing that in dealing with this, we should also bear in mind the water needs and requirements of the rural people, whether they live within Tamale or beyond.

Then, Mr. Speaker, if you look at the Committee's Report, page 3 -- I have dealt with that -- Construction of Reservoirs and associated transmission and distribution pipelines. We would need to know the scope that it will cover and then we can get value for money for the project.

Mr. Speaker, with these few comments, I support the motion and urge all hon. Members to support it.

Minister for Water Resources, Works

and Housing (Mr. Hackman Owusu- Agyemang): Mr. Speaker, I think it is a little bit unfortunate that my distinguished Friend and Colleague thinks that it is because it was Koforidua that is why -- Indeed, I personally believe that these motions must be moved by the technical Ministry. I did not move the motion, neither was I given the opportunity to comment on it. I stood up but I was not given the opportunity and that is what it is.

Mr. Speaker, having said that, it was not because Koforidua is where I come from, we have given the scope of work. The last time we were here, for Tamale, the issue was raised that Parliament needed to know the scope of works and so with the

wisdom of hindsight we made this a lot more comprehensive than the Tamale one. But I would make the whole document available to him so that he can see the scope of work.

It is a legitimate question that he asked. I remember the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, of the Minority side, did say that we should have given a lot more details; so we would give that to him. That we should be able to do it among ourselves. Therefore, the scope of works would be taken care of.

As far as the water needs are concerned, for the time being, rationing is what we are doing and where there are emergency situations, we are trying to get boreholes. The difficulty, as usual, has always been lack of funds but I do appreciate the serious situation in Tamale, and in Koforidua for that matter.

Even this morning, I had a meeting with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and I told them that there was the need to give us more money for rural water supply. Out of 100 per cent, we are contributing only 6 per cent to rural water supply. The rest are all grants and so we cannot be at the mercy of those who give us the grants. So this is being discussed and I am sure we would address those by way of boreholes. As far as I remember from the Tamale Water Project, we would be serving the communities that are along the line.

Again as to the approval, he referred to the sequence of approval processes. What I know is that the technical Ministry will normally enter into an agreement signed between them and the contractors to signify the fact that most of them agree on this. It goes to Cabinet and if it is approved, it comes here. If it is not approved, it goes back to them and for the five years that I have been in Government, this is the way we have always worked
Prof. George Yaw Gyan-Baffour 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that
WHEREAS by the provisions of article 174 (2) of the Consitution, Parliament is empowered to confer power on any person or authority to waive or vary a tax imposed by an Act of Parliament;
THE EXERCISE of any power conferred on any person or authority to waive or vary a tax in favour of any person or authority is by the said provisions made subject to the prior approval of Parliament by resolution;
BY THE combined operation of the provisions of section 26 (2) of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (Management) Law, 1993 (PNDCL 330), the Export and Import Act, 1995 (Act 503), the Export Development and Investment Fund Act, 2000 (Act 582), the Value Added Tax Act, 1998 (Act 546), the Value Added Tax (Amendment) Act, 2000 (Act 579) and other existing Laws and Regulations applicable to the collection of customs duties and other taxes on the importation of goods into Ghana, the Minister for Finance may exempt any statutory

corporation, institution or individual from the payment of duties and taxes otherwise payable under the said Laws and Regulations or waive or vary the requirement of such statutory corporation, institution or individual to pay such duties and taxes;

IN ACCORDANCE with the provisions of the Constitution and at the request of the Government of Ghana acting through the Minister responsible for Finance, there has been laid before Parliament a request by the Minister for Finance for the prior approval of Parliament to the exercise by him of his power under the Laws and Regulations relating to the waiver of the payment of an amount of €7,983,892.00 on equipment and materials to be imported or purchased locally and a waiver of income tax for the expatriate staff for the execution of the Tamale Water Treatment Plant Reha-bilitation and Expansion works as stated in the contract Document signed between Ghana Water Company Ltd. and Messrs

BIWATER BV.

N O W T H E R E F O R E , t h i s h o n o u r a b l e H o u s e h e r e b y approves the exercise by the Minister responsible for Finance of the power granted to him by Parliament by Statute to waive or to exempt the payment of an amount of E7,983,892.00 on equipment and materials to be imported or purchased locally and a waiver of income tax for the expatriate staff for the execution of the Tamale Water Treatment Plant Rehabilitation and Expansion works as stated in the contract Document signed between Ghana Water Company Ltd. and

Messrs BIWATER BV.
Mr. Kwadwo Agyei-Addo 11:30 a.m.
Mr.
Speaker, I beg to second the motion.
Question put and motion agreed to.
Resolved accordingly.
rose
Mr. Speaker 11:30 a.m.
Hon. Member for
Nabdam, I have already put the Question. Do you have any comment or what?
Mr. Asaga 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I still want us to do that correction. The hon. Minister got up but did not respond to this issue of double taxation. This is because I do not think that any expatriate in Ghana -- Unless there is double taxation, we cannot be waiving tax on incomes that they have earned. This is because if I go to Britain and I earn an income, I will be taxed.
So I would want to know from the hon. Minister whether this was negotiated or not. Why should we immediately just give Belgium expatriate staff a waiver on incomes that are earned? And I just wanted us to clarify that.
Mr. Speaker 11:30 a.m.
Hon. Member for Nabdam, I hope you will come properly. You ask the question at the appropriate time because the matter has been dealt with. Item 5 -- Statements.
STATEMENTS 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC -- Tamale South) 11:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, thank you very much for the opportunity to associate myself with the Statement on women participation in the decentralised politics of our country and to congratulate and commend the hon. Member who made the Statement. I do hope that our women-folk would take this opportunity as we approach the June/July District Assembly election, to take interest in local governance.
Mr. Speaker, I very much agree with her that quite apart from problems of low literacy rate, cultural and traditional barriers, there are indeed financial barriers to the participation of women in politics. But in my view, the most important hindering factor is the courage of the women themselves to want to get into politics, maybe because of its hazards. Not many of them have the big heart.
I think that, Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member who made the Statement is a
perfect example of a mentor that many of our women can look up to and not just at the decentralized level. She is at the central level of the National Assembly of our Parliament as a woman and many of them can take a cue from her. They should consider it that when they get into politics, indeed, they are more likely to be successful as they do in business and many other areas.
I also acknowledge that recently,
the Ministry for Women and Children's Affairs established a fund and I hope that hon. Members themselves and institutions would contribute to the fund and also urge other benevolent individuals to do same. I can only hope that the fund would be distributed fairly to all manner of women who may be interested in participating in our decentralized politics.
Mr. Speaker, one of the major weaknesses of our decentralization system is the lack of incentives for the Assemblymen. When they go for meetings, their allowances are woefully inadequate; they are not encouraged by it and I think that we need to take certain decisions to support our local Assemblymen. Many of them are very supportive of Members of Parliament in their respective electoral areas.
I would like to commend the hon. Member who made the Statement and call on Ghanaian women to courageously pursue politics as a life endeavour. There is opportunity for success for women.
I thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Deputy Minister for Manpower, Youth and Employment: (Mrs. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare): Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to

contribute to the Statement made by the hon. Member of Parliament for Asante- Akim South (Mrs. Gifty Ohene-Konadu).

Mr. Speaker, if women are to participate

actively in local governance and, indeed, in decision-making, there are some practical measures that need to be addressed. Mr. Speaker, women are engaged in multiple roles in society and we have identified them as productive roles, reproductive roles and community roles. Indeed, these experiences of women make them very suitable for contributing to local development.

However, Mr. Speaker, it is precisely these multiple roles that also stifle their effort in making themselves available for positions like District Assembly members and even as parliamentarians. Time for women in Ghana is so overstretched that sometimes it is very hard for them to aspire for other positions or other high level positions. I would like to urge that people who have projects to support women, to recognize that to women, time is very important and therefore the processes that they put in place in terms of women being ready to even access support should be less time-consuming.

Mr. Speaker, I have seen particularly

non-government organizations (NGOs) supporting women but through laborious meetings upon meetings to the extent that before they access the support, so much has been lost. I believe that if you want to help a woman, we ought to recognize the role they play and fashion out programmes that would take care of their need and reduce those laborious processes that women have to go through before they access one small form of support. And this is always repeated by another group that comes; if I went through some processes of participation of this or that, when another NGO comes, they have to send the same women through that and they really get
Minister for Communications (Prof. M. Oquaye) 11:50 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for this opportunity given me to contribute to this very enlightening statement on the floor of the House.
Mr. Speaker, local governance today is geared at development of our local areas and women are very, very paramount in this regard. When we come to look
at health, matters of the environment, the cutting of firewood to make fire, education, sanitation and local training as well as allied areas of human endeavour, we see that women cannot be left out at all if we were to develop and improve upon our local communities towards rural development in particular.
What is more, Mr. Speaker, we find that even though we have about fifty-one per cent of our population as women, in terms of the rural-urban dichotomy, we have more of women in the rural areas. And in that connection, it means therefore that they should be focused upon more specially in any effort to work on the District Assemblies as agents of local development and for that matter national development.
But Mr. Speaker, we all know that there are a number of factors that militate against the active participation of women in local politics and it is important that we must look at some of these things critically in order to solve the problem.
Mr. Speaker, in this connection, some affirmative action may even be required at one point since I regard affirmative action and the intervention of the law as instruments for social engineering. If we think there is a problem and that the women are at a disadvantage, it is important for us to find ways and means of an affirmative action.
Among others, there are some financial barriers against these women. We may also want to look at whether we can make this a full-time affair and that if they are in full time employment, we may as well give women a quota when we come to talk about District Assembly allocation.
Mr. Haruna Iddrisu noon
On a point of
order. Mr. Speaker, the hon. Minister for Communications in his contribution is treading on very dangerous grounds when he makes suggestions that political parties can support -- the Constitution under the decentralized system does not allow for political party participation or support for candidates for District Assembly elections.
Prof. Oquaye noon
Mr. Speaker, that is
Mr. Speaker noon
Leadership, at this stage,
any indications?
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu noon
Mr.
Speaker, we have about finished the transaction of every business listed for today. There are however, some committees, which have been programmed to meet today. I do know that some have already started meeting; fortunately, some hon. Colleagues are here at the plenary. Mr. Speaker, in the circumstance, may I move that this House do now adjourn until tomorrow at 10.00 o'clock in the forenoon. I beg to move.
Mr. Doe Adjaho noon
Mr. Speaker, I beg
to second the motion.
Question put and motion agreed to.
ADJOURNMENT noon