Government instructions complement 2026 DDA Watch Report findings

By Eddie Tanago Paine | ACT NOW!

 The instructions by the Ministry of Provincial and Local Level Government Affairs that all districts must register the location of their headquarters, which should be in a central and accessible place, complement the 2026 DDA Watch Website report findings.

Accessible service delivery can only happen when mandated departments and DDAs make themselves available to citizens. That means having physical addresses of offices, contact details of officers including phone numbers, emails and websites publicly available to all.

The recently launched 2026 DDA Watch Website Report reveals, DDAs are operating in secrecy with zero visibility of key development documents and contact details.

The analysis reveals that four years into the current parliamentary term, transparency among the nation’s 96 District Development Authorities (DDAs) has hit a terminal low. 

Despite the annual allocation of K20 million per district—representing a staggering K2 billion in public wealth managed at the local level this year alone—the national average transparency score has stalled at a dismal 18 out of 100.

This is not merely a failure of administration; it is a systemic blackout. 

It is now four-years since the last National election and there is less than 12-months to go before a new election is held. However, the level of information and critical documents available from District Development Authorities (DDAs) remains appallingly low. This lack of performance is reflected in the very low rating scores for most DDAs on the DDA Watch website.

The main findings of the 2026 DDA Watch Website Report are:

• Only 37 out of 96 DDAs seem to have a five-year development plan for 2022-2027.
• Just 12 DDAs have a five-year plan that is publicly available
• Only 1 DDA has published its annual budget and only 1 has published an acquittal report.
• No DIRD inspection reports and no financial audits for any DDA are publicly available
• Just 8 DDAs have a public email address
• Only 13 DDAs have a public phone number
• Only 20 DDAs have a public mailing address
• The highest ranking DDA has a score of 67 out of 100
• The lowest raking DDAs, 15 in total, have a score of zero.
• Only 5 DDAs have a score of 50 or above.
• The average DDA score is just 18 out of 100.
• The best performing Provinces are West New Britain and Western, with average DDA scores of 35 and 33 respectively
• The worst performing Provinces are Milne Bay, with an DDA average score of 5, and East New Britain and Hela with an average score of 8
• Regionally, there is no statistical difference in the performance of the DDAs. The average DDA score in each Region ranges from 16 – 18. 

The findings are so alarming and should not be ignored by revenant authorities.

The report further recommends the following steps to be taken to narrow the transparency gap: 

• Citizen Engagement: We urge citizens to actively engage with their DDAs, demanding transparency, accountability, and adherence to good governance practices. 
• District Planning: All DDAs must publish a 5-year development plan and make that plan available to the public

• DSIP Accountability: DDAs must promptly release detailed DSIP and DIP acquittal reports to restore public trust.
• Audit Expansion: Increase funding to the Auditor-General’s Office (AGO) to enable it to conduct audits for all ninety-six (96) districts. 
• Budget, acquittals and district plans: All Districts should publish their budgets, acquittals and district plans ensuring openness and fiscal responsibility. The lack of publicly available financial and planning documents raises concerns about transparency and governance.
• Funding Restrictions: The Department of Finance should stop distribution of further DSIP (District Services Improvement Program) and DIP (District Infrastructure Program) funds to districts with no plans, acquittals or contact details.
• Leadership Code Enforcement: The Ombudsman Commission (OC) should act under the Leadership Code against CEOs and DDA Board chairs who fail to publish plans, acquittals or contact details.
• Leadership Action: All DDAs should publish the names of their CEO, and contact phone, email and postal addresses. Improving communication channels is critical; ensuring that each DDA has a designated CEO, active email, phone number, and an official Postal address or website will strengthen public access to information.
• Enhance Monitoring and Accountability: Allocate additional funding to the Department of Implementation and Rural Development (DIRD) to strengthen monitoring and reporting frameworks. This will ensure comprehensive tracking and transparency of DDA activities, with a specific focus on inspection and audit reports.

Overall, while a few districts have made some attempts at improving their transparency and public engagement, all DDAs are still failing to fulfil the basic requirement for good governance. Strengthening information access, public engagement, and enforcement of governance frameworks are key to improving service delivery and ensuring that development funds are effectively utilized.

Full 2026 DDA Watch Website Report can be accessed using the link here – https://ddawatch.gn.apc.org/sites/default/files/2026-10/DDA%20Watch%20Report%20July%202026.pdf