The newly appointed Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Northern Development Authority, (NDA) Hon. Boniface Gambila, has begun a rigorous management audit exercise as part of a comprehensive plan to restructure the NDA.

In his maiden engagement with employees of the Authority, both in the Tamale, Accra and Zonal offices, Hon. Gambila emphasized, that his ultimate goal is to work towards achieving massive efficiency and effectiveness in the Organization through team work.

In view of this, Heads of Directorates, Departments and Zones have been tasked to revisit the culture of organizing weekly departmental and management meetings to foster productivity as per best practices globally.

Further to this, all heads of Departments are to expeditiously submit work plans, which are to be simplified into actionable segments for onward approval and implementation.

The Management audit also seeks to provide robust solutions to addressing existing managerial weaknesses and inefficiencies that are ripping the Authority of its ability to live up to expectation.

Owing to this, the Acting CEO is demanding a situational report from all Unit Heads, detailing core functions of their respective units, stale plans, ongoing plans and challenges to afford him the opportunity to lend the needed support.

Part of the management audit plan is to spearhead capacity building of staff to improve knowledge, attitudes and profound skills in engaging with both external and internal stakeholders involved in the development agenda of the Northern Development Zone (NDZ).

Notably, the Acting CEO also outlined plans to establish a central administrative unit to serve as an information incubator for the Organization and its external partners as per international benchmarks.

Ensuring probity and accountability at all managerial levels is a major component of the management audit exercise. According to Hon Boniface Gambila, all staff, irrespective of rank, must strictly follow required procedures in acquiring and accounting for all requisitions. In this light, all staff who make reckless decisions will be held accountable for their actions.

Staff motivation related issues is also top on the agenda of Hon. Boniface Gambila. Relevant departments within the Authority have therefore been asked to prioritize the payment of all outstanding staff financial claims.

A critical area in the management audit process is to conduct an inventory of all projects under the Government’s Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP) initiative, undertaken by the immediate past leadership of the organization.

On tribal and ethnic colouration of the NDA, Hon. Boniface Gambila emphatically stressed that the institution is for Ghana and not the property of a particular tribe or certain group of persons. He therefore cautioned staff to desist from conducting themselves in any manner that confirms such connotations.

The debut staff engagement ended with a section of the employees expressing varied concerns about falling managerial standards within the organization over the past three years.