National News

Kasungu Council ready for ‘development budget’

Kasungu District Council has challenged the Parliamentary Committee on Local Authority and Rural Development that it has the capacity to implement its development budget.

Kasungu District Council director of planning and development Earnest Kaphuka last week told the Local Authority and Rural Development Committee, which visited the council, that the local authority is ready to implement the development budget.

Guardians at Kasungu Hospital in need of a good shelter
Guardians at Kasungu Hospital in need of a good shelter

Apart from other recurrent expenditure (ORT), councils also implement the development budget as part of devolving some of the activities of central government to the councils.

Said Kaphuka: “Although we have some challenges, we are ready to handle the development budget as a council. We have a good track record and experience as we have successfully implemented the Public Works Programme and Local Development Fund Projects, so we can also handle the development budget.”

He said that there is a good working relationship between councillors, members of Parliament (MPs) and the secretariat, a development he said would help the council successfully implement the budget.

Chairperson of the parliamentary committee, Harry Chipeni, said his committee had been instrumental in making sure that development budget is handled by local councils as part of decentralisation.

Kasungu district council will implement projects in 2015/16 financial year using a development budget pegged at K208 million. n

Related Articles

Back to top button