The vision of the KMA to digitise its revenue mobilisation for a more effective management of local public finances looks very real with Kumasi joining the African Smart Towns Network (ASToN).
By Afedzi Abdullah
The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) is one of the 260 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in Ghana and forms part of the 43 districts in the Ashanti Region, with Kumasi as its administrative capital.
The vision of the KMA to digitise its revenue mobilisation for a more effective management of local public finances looks very real with Kumasi joining the African Smart Towns Network (ASToN). ASToN is a network of 12 African cities with the commitment to use digital tools to address local and global challenges as pertained to their specific localities and contexts.
The aim of creating an alliance and partnership between the participating cities is for them to rapidly become leading digital players in their respective local contexts, in an appropriate and sustainable manner. The two- and half-year project seeks to help African Local Authorities to make the most use of digital, data, and technology. The project hopes to achieve this by creating a local dynamic through local action groups, framing of clear problems to address using digital & tech and developing a Local Action Plan.
The programme is financed by the French Development Agency (AFD), managed by the French National Urban Renovation Agency (ANRU) and inspired by URBACT knowledge and tools. The KMA initially settled on mobility and wanted to digitise mobility in Kumasi, however, through discussions, the focus of the assembly changed from mobility to revenue mobilisation. E-tax therefore became the new focus with mobility as the second focus as far as the ASToN project was concerned.
The change in focus, according to Randy Wilson, the local coordinator of the ASToN project became necessary because the assembly realised that most often the project comes in with its implementation funds and when project funds are not forthcoming, the assembly is not able to continue implementing the things that were planned as part of the projects.
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This article was commissioned by the ASToN Network and Jamlab Africa