Abel: Districts must have plans

 PROVINCES have been urged to utilise the Department of Rural Development to help develop their districts.

National Planning and Mo­nitoring Minister Charles Abel said line departments could assist district administrations to implement development initiatives through effective 

expenditure planning.

“District planners and public servants can work together and seek expert advice from these line agencies to build the capacity and infrastructure in the districts,” he told Parliament last week.

Abel said the main challenge for districts to improve their infrastructure was to have a standard five-year development plan.

“Through the five-year development plans districts will be able to prioritise on which infrastructural programmes their funding will be utilised,” he said. 

He said the main function of the National Planning Department was to provide funds but they could also assist to implement various programmes with the support of other line departments.

“We want to see your plans in place then we can allocate funding. 

“Districts must have plans according to your needs,” Abel said.

He said after reviewing various developmental programmes there was a lack of planning in most of the districts in the country.

Abel was responding to Chimbu Governor Noah Kool who asked whether the department had a development “blue print” plan for the dis-tricts.

Kool said he was concerned that there was a lack of capacity in the districts to initiate proper strategies and implement development programmes.