The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority is preparing to expand its mobile operations to communities across the Eastern Corridor of the Northern Region, a move officials say will allow residents in underserved areas to access driver and vehicle licensing without undertaking long and costly journeys.

The initiative will complement a newly commissioned office in Yendi and a network of planned satellite offices in districts including Saboba and Wulensi, according to the authority.

Iddisah Yeboah Seidu, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Operations at the DVLA, said the mobile service model is designed to target communities where demand is significant and to bring the agency directly to residents.

“We are saying that we can come to you if you have some good numbers. We call it mobile service.” He said.

He said for years, residents of the Eastern Corridor have been forced to travel to Tamale, a trip that can take more than two hours, to obtain or renew licenses and register vehicles. The expansion, he said, is expected to ease that burden.

Mr. Yeboah Seidu said bringing services closer to the population would also help curb exploitation by intermediaries, locally known as Goro boys, who charge inflated fees to facilitate access to official services.

“We are getting closer to you. This is just to cut off this issue of Goro or middlemen extorting money from you,” he said

The DVLA said the new Yendi office alone will serve more than seven municipalities and districts that previously had no direct access to its services.

He said the Authority plans to further deepen coverage with additional outposts across the corridor.

“We will have satellite offices across the area. Talk of Saboba, talk of Wiliŋgu, and all those areas will have satellite offices, so that we make sure that the whole area enclave is well covered.” He added

At the commissioning of the Yendi office, the Member of Parliament for Yendi Abdul-Fatawu Alhassan, said the effort is part of a broader push by the government and local authorities to decentralize state institutions.

He disclosed that work is underway to establish a local presence for the Ghana Standards Authority.

“Plans are in place to bring state institutions to Yendi. We are currently working on the Ghana Standards Authority,” he said.

Mr. Alhassan said citing more state agencies in Yendi would improve access to public services and reduce the need for residents to travel outside the municipality for basic administrative needs.