THE Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development (MLGRD) on Thursday began its third Annual Staff Retreat, a two-day activity aimed at providing a forum for MLGRD staff to present for examination and discussion the achievements and challenges they encountered while executing their work programmes in 2014. 

The occasion will also be used to discuss measures that have been put in place to counteract those challenges and prevent their recurrence in 2015.

The retreat is being held under the theme “Moving Forward in 2015 with Renewed Purpose”, and mechanisms to enhance all aspects of accountability and transparency will be strengthened during this retreat.

Local Government and Regional Development Minister, Norman Whittaker, in his address at the retreat, elaborated on “the essential function of the Ministry, which is to support the socio-economic development and infrastructure improvement in communities across Guyana.”

“As we provide services to aid in such development, we must be mindful of the fact that these improvements come out of Government’s development plans, which are reflected in the numerous programmes, such as the Government’s Poverty Reduction Plan; the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS); and the Annual Budget, which is presented in Parliament,” he detailed.
Whittaker emphasised the need for the ministry to “collaborate with the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs), Municipalities, Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs), Community Development Councils (CDCs), and sector ministries to pursue common goals with a view to realising these goals that are outlined in the programmes.”

Accountability and transparency are high on the agenda for 2015, and Whittaker urged MLGRD employees “to place emphasis on the way services are delivered to the people we serve.” He urged employees to ensure that “municipalities and the RDCs are more accountable and transparent for the monies they receive by ensuring that reports on achievements and impediments are submitted in a timely manner to the Ministry.”

In examining habits which have been adopted by some local organs, Minister Whittaker pointed out that there is a tendency of some local organs to wait until the end of the year to implement their programmes, since there is a rush to spend monies on unnecessary things to avoid funds from being returned to the Consolidated Fund.

The minister said he would like the employees “to focus on sanitation and improvement in the aesthetics of the environment” as part of their 2015 target. He also called on the Senior Regional Development Officers (SRDOs) and Regional Development Officers (RDOs) to put measures in place to address the blockages caused by concrete bridges that impede the flow of water, and to address the issues in cases where there is an increasing number of ‘cook-shops’ “operating without the mandatory requirements.”

In describing the work programme for 2015, Whittaker said in 2015, “I would like to see our Legal Unit activated to provide advisory services to the Ministry and the Local Authorities, which would put the ministry in a better position to help the Local Authority bodies with the most critical issues.”

In addition, he emphasised the need for an Audit Section to audit tax payers’ money collected by the NDCs, since this unit would also monitor the utilisation of the systems implemented to provide the framework within which monies are collected and accounted for.

The Local Government Department, Municipal Service Department, Personnel, Registry, Expenditure Planning and Management Unit (EPMU/Accounts), and Admin/Stores gave an overview of the work they undertook in 2014, along with their achievements and challenges. The Special Projects Department also gave an overview of several projects which were funded by foreign donors and implemented by the ministry, these included Youth Empowerment Inclusion and Reconciliation Project (YEIRP), Regional Solid Waste Management Programme (RSWMP), India/Brazil South America (IBSA), and Caribbean Local Economic Development Project (CARILED).

Overall, Whittaker is expecting that “the retreat will provide an opportunity for us to want to improve the way we do things; to embrace change.”
“Improvements”, he said, “are necessary, no matter what we do; there will always be room for improvements.”