ABSTRACT

The invaluable role played by  community  leaders  in  any  development  activity  cannot  be  overemphasized. This is because through the  participation  of  community  leaders  in  development activities,  community  members  could  also  be  influenced  to  participate.  The  study   therefore,   identified the extent to which community leaders participate in development activities in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba district.

Related literature was reviewed on the  concept  of  leadership,  leaders  and  group  effectiveness,  community development, leaders’ participation in  community  development,  among  others.  The  population of the study  consisted  of  all  community  leaders  at  Sawla-Tuna-Kalba  district  of  the  Northern  Region.  This  included  chiefs  and  elders,  unit   committee   members,   opinion   leaders,   leaders  of  women  groups,  and  youth  leaders.   One  hundred  community  leaders  formed  the  sample   for the study. The study  used  a  descriptive  survey  design.  Data  was  gathered  from  the  respondents  with the help of an interview schedule. The data was analysed using the SPSS software.

The following were the major results of the study:

• The  leaders   identified   educational,   constructional,   sanitation,   and   environmental   activities   as community development activities that were undertaken in the district from 2007-2009.
• Majority of the community leaders participated in varying levels of  planning  community development  activities  in  the  district.  On  the  contrary,  majority  of  the  community  leaders    did  not  participate  in  implementing,  and  monitoring  and  evaluation  of  community  development activities in the district.

• Promotion  of  peace  and  stability  in  the  district,  provision  of  rewards  to  leaders,  and  availability  of  funds  for  development  activities  were  some   of   things   indicated   by  community  as  ways  by  which  their   participation   in   community   development   activities   could be enhanced.

Some of the major findings of the study were that:

• Constructional,  educational,  sanitation,  and  environmental  activities  were  the   various   categories  of  community  development  activities  undertaken  in   the   district  within  the   past  two years.
• Majority  of  the  community  leaders  participate  in  varying  levels  of  the  planning  of  development activities.
• Community  leaders  were  of  the  view  that   providing   them   with   rewards,   involving community members in  development  activities,  promoting  peace  and  harmony  among  the various  groups  in  the  district,  and  organizing  training  programmes  for  them,  were  some  of   the ways of enhancing their participation in development activities in the district.

The study recommended amongst others that avenues should be created for leaders to continuously  participate  in  the  planning,  implementing,  and  monitoring  and   evaluation   of   community   development activities since such  the  participation  of  leaders  in  those  stages  were  crucial  to  the  success of development activities.

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

            Background of the Study

The ability of a  group  to  accomplish  its  set  goals  and  to  satisfy  the  needs  of  its  members  depends to a large extent on the few  individuals  who  direct  and  coordinate  the  activities  of  the  group.  Effective  leadership  is  most  likely  to  contribute  to  the  realization  of  collective  group  goals,  whereas  poor  leadership  has  the  tendency  of  impacting  negatively  on  the  group’s   ability   to   achieve  results.  In  the  same  manner,  the  ability  of  communities  to  identify  and  solve  problems   that affect them depends to a large extent on their local leaders.

The invaluable role played by leaders in any community development endeavor cannot  be overemphasized. This  is  because,  by  the  leaders’  active  involvement  in  self-help  projects,  community  members  can  become  inspired  to  participate.  Through   their   participation,   they   are  able to  provide  clear  directions  and  motivation  that  would  boost  the  morale  of  community  members.  Sometimes  through  their  involvement  they  are  also  able  to  secure  support,   both   technical and financial, from institutions and agencies  that  are  within  their  reach.  This  ultimately  brings about success of such projects and since  people  often  want  to  associate  themselves  with  success,  many  more  community  members  would  be  encouraged  to  participate  in  subsequent   projects  led  by  such  leaders.  Quite  a  number  of  development  projects  in  some  rural  communities  in Ghana have come to a standstill due to the non-participation of local leaders.

The need to achieve  an  appreciable  level  of  development  in  rural  areas  in  the  country,  has  called  for  the  introduction  of  programmes  aimed  at  improving  the   capacities   of   local   leaders.  Leadership  capacity  building  workshops  have  been  held  in  many  rural  areas  in  the  country  as     part of equipping local leaders with the requisite skills to effectively  mobilize  their  members  for  self-help developmental purposes.

Biney (2003) asserts that  Ghana’s  community  development  programme  which  started  in  the  late  1940s sought to  develop  community  leadership  and  encourage  citizens’  participation  through  education and training of the people in  rural  communities  to  undertake  activities  or  projects  to  promote   socio-economic   advancement   based   on   comprehensive   planning.   The   programme,   Biney argues, led to the mass-education of people especially non-literate adults and  generated  the  self-help spirit of rural people in the construction of small-scale water systems for  drinking  and agriculture,  rural  roads,  schools,  health  posts,  and   community   centres.   The   generally  acknowledged  success  of  Ghana’s  community  development  programme  between   1951   and   1957 was perhaps due to government’s readiness to sponsor such projects.

Village and Town Committees now called Zonal Committees  were  established  in  all  villages  and  towns in Ghana by the government of the first republic in 1963. They were charged  with  the  responsibility  of  planning  and  coordinating  all  development  activities  in  their  respective  communities (Biney, 2003). Campfens (1997)  has  observed  that  human  development  during  this  period was viewed primarily within the  context  of  traditional  communal  forms  of  societal  organization. Community development attempted to integrate the group or clan based

communities  into  the  larger  institutional  systems  of  the  society.  A  holistic   approach   which   adopted  and  promoted  mass  education,   self-help,   and   awareness   programmes   aimed   at   mobilizing individuals and  groups.  To  address  their  own  needs  and  problems,  local  communities  were  encouraged  to  identify  their  own  needs  and  to  participate   in   meeting   them.   Commins   (1979) also notes that efforts were made to nurture  local  leadership  and  the  development  of communities’ capacity overtime.

A   new  programme  was  introduced  in  the  early  1990’s  as  part  of  Ghana’s  Programme  of  Action   to Mitigate the Social Cost of Adjustment (PAMSCAD) which was aimed  at  developing  and  rehabilitating  rural  housing.  The  programme  originated  within   the   continuation   schools   programme,  a  pilot  scheme  developed  and  funded  by  UNICEF  in  1986  (Campfens,   1997).   Initially, twelve centres were established across  the  country  which  eventually  expanded  and consolidated and were  charged  with  the  teaching  of  vocational  skills  to  school  leavers  so  as  to  make them employable. These centres were later renamed the Integrated Community Centre for Employable Skills (ICCES) and gained popularity across the nation due to the low-cost housing  constructed from local materials.

Programmes such as the Women’s Income Generation project and those operated by the Ghana Reconstruction  Movement  and  the  3  P1  December  Women’s  Movement  demonstrate   the effectiveness of Non-Governmental Organisations in working with communities to enhance their entrepreneurial  skills  for  their  own  development.  Church  organisations  have  also  complemented     the efforts of government in many community development activities. One such organisation is

the Brong Ahafo Catholic Cooperative Society for Development (BACCSD) which  introduced programmes that help maize farmers analyse their production techniques, provide education  for  prospective members of the cooperative  and  extend  credit  (Campfens,  1997).  These  efforts  demonstrate that people can be adequately empowered to improve their living conditions.

The  Ghana  government  between  2001  and  2008  initiated  and   implemented  many  projects  that   were  aimed  at  enhancing  rural  development  nationwide.  One  such   project   is   the   Rural   Enterprises  Project  which  sought  to  equip  rural  folk  with  entrepreneurial  skills  as  well  as  help  them establish their own businesses.

However, in  spite  of  these  and  many  other  developmental  initiatives  by  successive  governments  with the view of bringing about  the  desired  development  nationwide,  the  Northern  Region  still  remains one of the most deprived areas in terms of access to  basic  and  necessary  facilities  and  amenities. Records available indicate  that  out  of  every  ten  people  in  the  Northern  Region,  sev  en  are  considered  poor  (Abu-Bakr,  2004).  This  has  prompted  calls  from  the   Northern   Regional  House of Chiefs to successive governments  to  divide  the  region  into  two.  This  they  believe  will  speed up development in the area.