The Upper West Regional Minister, Charles Lwanga Puozuing, has issued a strong warning to newly recruited Community Facilitators under the Gulf of Guinea Northern Regions Social Cohesion (SOCO) project, urging them to stop speculating and seek clarification from Municipal and District Assemblies when they need information.

Speaking at an engagement in Wa, the Minister charged the facilitators to own the opportunity and become true ambassadors of accurate information in their communities.

“When you are concerned about an issue, do not speculate or provide information based on assumptions. Seek clarification from the appropriate District Assembly officials,” he stressed.

Mr Puozuing described the facilitator role as more than just a job, saying it was an opportunity for personal development and community transformation. He urged the facilitators to save and invest part of their earnings.

“Save part of your earnings, invest in a productive activity, develop a useful skill. We want the benefits to extend beyond this assignment,” he added.

The Minister reminded the facilitators that the government and the World Bank were investing $150 million in 48 assemblies across six northern regions to prevent conflict spillover from the Sahel and improve livelihoods.

Meanwhile, the SOCO Zonal Coordinator for Upper West and Savannah, David Yankey, revealed significant progress under the project.

Under Cycle 1, the project delivered 127 sub-projects, including schools, CHPS compounds, roads and libraries, across all 11 districts in the Upper West Region and selected districts in the Savannah Region.

Cycle 2 is even larger, with 173 sub-projects, including JHS blocks, primary schools, nursery blocks and clinics, currently under construction.

Mr Yankey explained that the facilitators would serve as a critical link between communities, District Assemblies and the Ministry. They would help ensure that community needs captured in Action Plans were reflected in the projects delivered by the government, while also supporting the recruitment of local youth for construction jobs.

The project is also going fully digital.

According to the Management Information Systems Specialist, Richard Adofo Ansong, SOCO has deployed the SOCO App for data collection in the field, alongside a SOCO Management Information System (MIS) that serves as a repository for high-level decision-making.

To handle complaints, all World Bank projects are required to have a grievance redress mechanism. SOCO is using the Single Window Citizen Engagement Service (SWCES) operated by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection for this purpose.