Zambia Law Development Commission

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ZLDC HOLDS FINAL PROVINCIAL STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIVE MEEETING ON THE REVIEW OF THE CONSTITUENCY DEVELOPMENT FUND ACT

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Mr. Mambo Hamaundu, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.

 

By Inutu Akolwa and Innocent Siachitoba

The Zambia Law Development Commission (ZLDC) has conducted the final provincial stakeholder consultative meeting at Nakatindi Hall in Lusaka.

The meeting was officially opened by Mr. Mambo Hamaundu, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development. It was held from 27th to 28th February, 2023. Mr. Hamaundu assured participants that all the submissions received from all the 10 provinces will be compiled to facilitate the drafting of a Bill which will be presented to Parliament during the current sitting. The Permanent Secretary thanked the Zambia Law Development Commission for leading the consultative process.

The Constituency Development Fund (CDF) was first established in Zambia in 1995 to support micro-community projects as part of the wider decentralisation and local development policy. The fundamental objective was to provide resources to bridge the financing gap arising from non-existence sources of funds to finance micro-community led projects in all the Constituencies across the Country. The first appropriation and disbursement of the fund was done in 1995 after approval by Parliament.

In 2016 the Fund was established by the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act No.2 of 2016, Article 162.  Consequently, the Constituency Development Fund Act No. 11 of 2018 was enacted to provide for the management, disbursement, utilization and accountability of the Fund. Over the years, the CDF has evolved in scope and extent with increased financial allocation. This requires enhanced prudence in the manner the Fund is managed and utilised. Also demands that the selection of projects and programmes is done in accordance with the needs of the community while facilitating job creation within the Community.

The Commission, through stakeholder consultation, identified some preliminary issues in the Act which require to be redressed. The identified issues included among others:

  • The need to clearly define the scope of CDF;
  • The constitution and /composition of the Constituency Development Fund Committee;
  • The need to achieve meaningful and effective decentralisation in terms of approval processes;
  • Procurement processes, as provided for under the Public Procurement Act, not to hinder the implementation of projects;
  • Variation of Funds to be done in accordance with the Public Finance Management Act, 2018;
  • The need to clearly define the role of the Minister relating to the Fund; and
  • The need to revise the role and functions of the councils.

The holding of the consultative meeting in Lusaka was organized by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, working with the Zambia Law Development Commission, with support from the Local Impact Governance Project (USAID).