One-on-one with Honourable Mbangweta
The Zambian Governance Foundation, through its support to Caritas Mongu, has been working in Kaoma district mainly supporting social accountability initiatives on the prudent utilisation of the Constituency Development Fund. However, after government split the district into two districts namely Kaoma and Nkeyema, the sustainability of the results achieved in Nkeyema district was under threat mainly due to having a completely new civic leadership which had not been adequately oriented on civic roles and responsibilities. Concerned by this and the implication it would have for service delivery in the district, the area Member of Parliament, Honourable Kapelwa Mbangweta approached ZGF to request for support in training civic leaders in his area. ZGF ultimately arranged to deliver the training through Caritas Mongu, whose initiative was still running and could easily integrate the training of the Nkeyema civic leaders. The training focused on good governance and accountability for councilors and council executives as a crucial element for development.
In an interview a few weeks after the training which brought together councilors, council administrators and executives, Honourable Mbangweta expressed satisfaction and gratitude with the support provided. “I commend ZGF for the training as it enabled participants to understand and appreciate the need for applying the basic principles of good governance”, he said.
The MP said the training provided skills on finance and budgeting, planning, implementation and monitoring of local development projects. “Leaders need to understand that members of the community are obliged to demand accountability and it would be easier if they work together. There is need for coordination between communities and the council. It’s important for councillors and council executives to understand their separate roles so that they do not clash. The other issue was about financial management how to budget and how to comply with the financial regulations”, he said.
Responding to a question as to how he was working towards demystifying the traditionally held notion that politicians only work during election campaigns and disappear afterwards, Hon. Mbangweta said, “ this is one of the issues which was addressed during the training, councillors were made to understand and appreciate why they should involve communities in their planning processes. At the beginning of the councillors’ tenure, we requested them to revisit their wards and identify areas of priority together with the communities. We then compiled the information and we are now aware of the specific wards that need resources. We have also been encouraging meetings with communities which I also attend so that we serve the people."
The Lawmaker said it was important for government to work with CSOs for the general good of communities. He explained that in most instances the CSOs were closer to the people.
“The civil society especially is important because they are nearer to the people than maybe the government to some extent. CSOs compliment government efforts, for example this course would not have been possible without the help of ZGF. The training is not only beneficial to the councillors but the communities as well. Once you have enlightened councillors, it means they will carry out their work diligently” Hon. Mbangweta concluded.
For ZGF, the way the training was conceived and ultimately delivered showed the possibilities that exist for enhancing collaboration between civil society organisations and policy makers. The myriad of issues on which civil society organisations intervene require different forms of collaboration with different stakeholders for them to be addressed, and ZGF is increasingly looking to explore avenues for achieving this. Collaborations such as the one that followed Hon. Mbangweta’s approach to ZGF are just one example of what is possible, and ZGF will continue to be open to different ways of enhancing such collaboration between civil society and relevant stakeholders.
By Tarisai Jangara
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