Assembly members of the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba district have been told to focus on developing their areas to uplift the image of the district. The District Chief Executive for Sawla-Tuna-Kalba district, Mr. James Kipo Sunyazi, said the thrust of the policy of decentralization was mainly to promote popular participation by devolving power, functions, resources, and means from the centre to the community levels. He was hopeful that they were now conversant with the objectives of decentralization, such as empowerment, popular participation, accountability, effectiveness and efficient use of resources, responsiveness, decongestion, and ensuring good governance. The DCE made this observation after an orientation workshop organized by the Ministry of Local Government on salient tenet of the decentralization. Mr. Sunyazi said that the task ahead was enormous and entreated all to remain focus, and resolute in the discharge of their statutory duties, and responsibilities, as the diverse nature of the District calls for consensus building, and understanding of issues as they unfolded. He commended some development partners such as the Northern Regional Poverty Reduction Programme, (NORPREP) and the community Based Rural Development Programme (CBRDP) for their support to get the Senyeri and Gindabo Area councils well equipped to enable them to function effectively, and appealed to other partners to also assist the remaining Area councils in the District to make them functional. The DCE noted that, with support from the Assembly Common Fund, the community Based Rural Development Programme, HIPC, and others, a number of development projects initiated were completed to improve on the lifestyle of the people as well as encouraged workers posted to the area to stay to work in the newly created district. According to him some projects including construction of the Assembly hall and office, police Stations and bungalows in Sawla and Tuna, to house the police, construction of street light and slabs to improve on sanitation, and construction of (3) Unit Chalets at Jang were all completed. He said under the District Wide Assistance Programme, (DWAP), other projects, including the construction of three Unit Classroom block and auxiliary facilities at Sawla, construction of some detached staff Bungalow at Sawla, and procurement of 500 dual desks to be distributed to various schools, were also completed. He said under the Community Based Rural Development Programme, three (3) units teaches bungalow at Kong, (3) unit classroom block and auxiliary facilities at Baborayiri, (3) unit classroom block at Yerkoi and the construction of CHPS compounds were completed and valued millions of cedis. Mr. Sunyazi noted that 150 youths engaged last year had prepared 300 acres to start maize farming and that 200 others were also engaged under the Youth Employment Programme in the district, and posted to various schools as volunteer teachers, whilst 25 others were also engaged in sanitation with ¢87.5 million paid to the Zoom Lion for the cost of 25 tricycles and accessories, and other sanitation activities. Source: GNA