Find Your Feet and Church and Society geared to support Public Sector Reform Program

By Frank Kauteka Tembo

A consortium of Find Your Feet Organisation and Church and Society of CCAP Synod of Livingstonia says they are committed to supporting government to improve and sustain quality public service delivery.

The development comes at a time His Excellency Professor Peter Muthalika is championing Public Sector Reform program which he introduced soon after attaining the high office.

Addressing Rumphi District Executive Committee (DEC) members Thursday the consortium  said they have embarked on promoting participatory and inclusive development in Likoma and Rumphi districts to complement government's effort in delivering quality developments.

Representing the consortium Find Your Feet Program Manager Melina Mtonga told Voice of Kanyawazi that the project will empower local structures to actively and meaningfully monitor and track public development resources at local government level in the targeted districts by 2020.

“When Area Development Committees (ADCs) and Village Development Committees (VDCs) are empowered the impact will be that the locals will be able to follow up developmental projects

happening in their jurisdictions and be able to question the authorities if they feel that the projects are not implemented according to the project plan,” said Mtonga.

She added that the initiative will help central government save finances that are channeled towards refurbishing the substandard developmental projects that comes following the misuse of the public funds by some local council members.

Commenting on the development, Rumphi district Director of Planning and Development Frank Mkandawire pledged support for the project saying it will help to ensure on issues of transparency and accountability in both private and public sectors.

“This is a welcome initiative as it is promoting trust between locals and the district council but let me advise our valued partners [Find Your Feet and Church and Society] that Local Accountability

Clubs need to be trained enough so that they understand how councils operate as they will be executing their duties to avoid misperceptions between the councils and the locals,” observed Mkandawire.

Recently government passed the Access to Information (ATI) bill as one way of its Public Sector Reform program.

Find Your Feet Organisation and Church and Society of CCAP Synod of Livingstonia are implementing a one year joint

 ‘Promoting Participatory and Inclusive Development’ project in Likoma and Rumphi districts with a tune of eighty two million two hundred twenty five thousand kwacha (MK82, 225, 000) from Tilitonse Funds.