A Narrative and Reflective Assessment of the Institutional Contexts of Strategic Regional Development Programmes and Actor-agency Roles in the Central Region of Ghana

Abstract

Evolvement, initiation and implementation of regional development programmes implemented over the period 1990-2001 in the Central Region of Ghana involved a maze of institutions of international, national, regional and local stature. These programmes include the Central Regional Integrated Development Programme (CERIDEP), Tourism Development Strategy for the Central Region (TODSCER) and particularly the Natural Resource Conservation and Heritage Preservation (NRCHP) Project (NCRHPP). The Central Regional Co-ordinating Council (CRCC) and its endogenous regional agency, Central Region Development Commission (CEDECOM) designed and proposed these in agreement with their relevant stakeholders and partners. Therefore, all the relevant institutions were involved in the developments to various extents. In the post-project era, some of these institutions continue to be engaged in the successive extension and expansion of the NRCHPP’s achievement. Therefore, the institutional framework and policy contexts of these programmes remain an imperative attraction. This study is aimed at appraising and assessing the roles, effectiveness and relevant successive sustainability of the institutional contexts and framework of the regional programmes. Practical assessment approaches, mainly the narrative form and reflective learning are emphasised. A number of challenges are also identified and policy proposals made for the amelioration of these.

Keywords: Strategic Regional Development Programmes; Institutional Effectiveness; Actor-agency Roles and Relationships; Practical Assessment Approaches; Narrative Form; Reflective Learning.