Donor-Funded Projects And Sustain Ability Challenges In Ghana (Upper West Region)

Ghana a country located in western part of Africa joined the World Bank on 29th December 1960. In the 1970s the bank had shifted its attention to poverty eradication, people oriented development, projects dealing with food security among other factors. These projects were designed on paper to reach the beneficiaries directly. Currently, the World Bank’s portfolio for development projects in Ghana adds up to USD$2,188 billion in 25 project and more. The question that remains is what happened when the bank pulls out after project completion. This study therefore becomes imperative to find out the sustainability challenges of projects in the education sector specifically infrastructure in selected schools in various communities in the upper west region, s This document will also serve as a document of reference for other donors involved in the education in Ghana with emphasis on the Chinese government. The specific objectives of this study are to the reasons why the World Bank supports education in Ghana, find out the sustainability challenges of these projects, and determine strategies which both donors and communities can use to improve sustainability levels. Also to understand how some projects are better sustained than others. The study used a sample of 200 from the appropriate populace through the use of cluster sampling technique. Furthermore, key informant interviews, questionnaires, inferences from the researchers past work and direct observation of finished and ongoing projects was done. From what the researcher discovered, it was paramount that project beneficiaries are adequately included in the process of the project cycle in the matter of achieving and improving sustainability levels. The intricacies of development should be well understood from the viewpoint of those benefitting making it a partnership between locals and donors, thus promoting a sense of commitment and ownership among beneficiaries. From this perspective, it will imply that long after the World Bank pulls out communities will maintain projects as best as they can use local resources. The study on this note concludes identified challenges such as inadequate community participation, inadequate transfer of community skills, and a top-down approach of management practices, limited commitment and ownership levels of communities to projects. Nevertheless, the research detected that there is a possibility and little evidence to buttress and support the fact that other World Bank projects in other regions of Ghana are faced with similar challenges since schools were selected from one region out of 10 regions. The study recommends steps are taken to adequately increase all stakeholder (community) participation holistically.