Online Reporter
Conrad Mupesa
Mashonaland West Bureau
MASHONALAND West Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Marian Chombo, today met councillors and senior officials from three local authorities in Hurungwe District as part of ongoing efforts to assess service delivery, accountability and governance within councils.
The engagement, held in Magunje, brought together representatives from Hurungwe Rural District Council, Chirundu Town Board and Karoi Town Council.
The meeting forms part of a province-wide programme through which Minister Chombo is engaging local authorities to evaluate their performance and identify challenges affecting service delivery.
Similar meetings have already been held with councils in Chegutu, Sanyati, Zvimba and Makonde districts.
Addressing participants, Minister Chombo commended local authorities for continuing to provide essential services despite financial constraints and low revenue collection.
She, however, urged councils to address outstanding salary arrears, warning that delayed remuneration was affecting employee morale and could ultimately compromise service delivery.
“Salary arrears have an effect on service delivery as workers will not be happy to perform their duties,” she said.
Several local authorities in the province, including Chinhoyi Municipality, Makonde Rural District Council and Kadoma City Council, have been grappling with salary backlogs.
The interface is intended to strengthen collaboration between the Government and local authorities while providing a platform for councils to share experiences, exchange best practices and collectively address service delivery challenges facing communities across the province.
Charles Duri