Cabinet has given the green light for the implementation of the national policy on street naming and property address system. The system had been on the drawing board for some time now, as the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD), which is the co-ordinating ministry for the project, undertook some preparatory work. As a result of the Cabinet approval, the MLGRD has begun the process of putting the system in place next year with the training of the technical staff of the metropolitan and municipal assemblies. A Deputy Minister at the ministry, Mr Elvis Afriyie-Ankrah; who made this known in an address read on his behalf by the Director of the Urban Development Unit of the ministry, Mrs Levina Owusu, at the first training workshop on the project at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region, said the exercise was very dear to the heart of the government and so it would ensure that it was implemented to the letter. The training of trainers' workshop, attended by 80 participants from the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo regions, was the first in a series for technical officers from metropolitan and municipal assemblies who would be at the forefront of the implementation process. Mr Afriyie-Ankrah expressed regret that in the 21st century cities such as Accra, Kumasi, Sekondi-Takoradi and Tamale had no street names, while buildings were not numbered. The deputy minister noted that the situation had seriously affected revenue mobilisation by the assemblies and hampered the activities of agencies such as the Fire Service, public utilities and ambulance services. He said for the project to be successful, there must be co-ordination, collaboration and commitment on the part of the stakeholders. Mr Afriyie-Ankrah also emphasised the training programme, saying it was key to ensuring a well-organised implementation. In an interview, the Project Co-ordinator, Mr Kwadwo Yeboah, said in all 240 technical staff members of the metropolitan and municipal assemblies would be trained. He said the Department of Town and Country Planning was playing a key role in the implementation, as it would ensure proper planning of communities to facilitate easy location of places.