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Lovemore Chikova Development Dialogue
The recent appointment of provincial development coordinators is a huge statement by the New Dispensation on its seriousness with implementing the devolution concept.
In fact, the devolution development concept has already taken roots in the provinces, with provincial leaders talking about what they can pursue to take their respective areas out of poverty.
This gives the newly-appointed provincial development coordinators a huge task to put the plans into action and coming up with solutions to problems that have been hindering economic growth at local level.
In doing that, the new officials should always remember that without community participation, their work will be difficult.
It is important for the development officers to always liaise and work with local communities on developmental projects that can be undertaken to ensure a change of status for their areas.
Developmental projects undertaken at lower levels of governance usually fail to succeed mainly because of lack of involvement of the communities, which sometimes end up resisting the efforts.
This means the newly-appointed provincial development coordinators should always be alert to the reality that without involving communities, their success will be limited.
In fact, the officers should create conditions that avail opportunities that give a chance for communities to contribute to the development process in their localities.
This always reignites the old debate about the top-down approach against the bottom-up approach to development.
The top-down approach is when officials foist development programmes on local communities, which are expected to accept them without questioning.
In this approach, and in many cases, there is known to be some resistance as communities fail to buy into the projects because of several reasons, including culture, gender and the environment.
The bottom-up approach involves consultations with the grassroots on developmental programmes, with some of the ideas coming from the community on what projects should be implemented.
This makes the communities feel part and parcel of the developmental projects, thereby eliminating some of the obstacles that can be encountered when it comes to implementation.
Apart from soliciting for ideas from the communities, the officials can be in their offices and think through developmental projects and ideas, but they will have to sell them to respective communities before implementation.
Imposing developmental projects on communities has in most cases brewed disaster and sometimes lack of cooperation from the supposed beneficiaries.
Community mobilisation should be one of the priorities by the newly-appointed provincial development coordinators if they are going to quickly spread the concepts around devolution.
People generally feel more energised when they are given an opportunity to participate in identifying problems they face and help in finding solutions.
It is a fact that the devolution concept was formulated as a way of trying to end poverty by ensuring equitable development throughout the country.
To effectively end poverty, there is need to involve those who are affected in programmes and projects being implemented for that purpose.
So, the provincial development coordinators should work with and alongside the people and sell their ideas to the communities before they are implemented.
This means before they can do anything in their new portfolios, the development officers should strive to hold meetings with the people, selling their ideas and listening to what the people envisage as possible solutions to their problems.
The key deliverables for the new officers is about growing provincial economies and increasing their Gross Domestic Product, so that they effectively contribute to the ultimate development of the country.
In future, the strength of Zimbabwe’s economy will not be understood without the contribution of all provinces, which places a huge responsibility on the provincial development coordinators.
The development coordinators should have the right to control the economic development in their provinces.
They should be relationship builders in their areas, and invest their energy in building synergies with communities for them to easily drive the development agenda.
The provincial development coordinators should be team players, building strong teams that liaise with the communities in pushing forward development, and identifying areas that need urgent attention.
This requires an open mind amenable to new ideas and suggestions.
Maintaining an open-door policy should be one of the practices of the provincial development coordinators so that people are free to identify problems and suggest solutions through their offices.
Otherwise a provincial development coordinator who is not approachable lacks the necessary communication with the grassroots, which are supposed to be the beneficiaries of the programmes being implemented.
Innovation should be the watch word for the provincial development coordinators because there is a huge gap out there in terms of knowledge, which requires critical thinkers to solve the development problems facing provinces.
The coordinators should acquaint themselves with national development policies to maintain a link between and the national economic blueprints.
The larger picture being to strengthen the provinces’ roles in economic development and their strategic positions to uplift the economy.
Devolution signifies a new direction in how the country’s economic and development system works, especially by widening participation in developmental programmes.
It is provided for in Chapter 14 of the Constitution, with its main goal being the equitable allocation of resources and the participation of local communities in the determination of development priorities within their areas.
This means that provinces, districts, wards and villages are empowered to make crucial decisions in terms of development programmes that can uplift the local people’s lives.
The result will be a competition among the provinces in improving their GDP and being the first to score successes in implementing developmental programmes that help people come out of poverty.
This is why provincial development coordinators should fully understand the potential in their areas of jurisdiction and the available resources that can be exploited for improving the people’s lives.
Each of the country’s 10 provinces is endowed with vast resources that await exploitation.
If the province has no capacity to unlock value from such resources, then the provincial development coordinator can lead in seeking investors who might be willing to go it alone or establish partnerships with the local communities.
What is needed is to realise the need to work extra hard to ensure that the devolution concept is successfully implemented and according to the set goals.
The major goal being to transform the people’s lives in line with the aspirations of the New Dispensation as laid down by President Mnangagwa.
Devolution is about the people and communities being transformed for the better and new dreams on economic progress being achieved.
The duty now falls on the coordinators to strategise, identify, plan and implement projects in collaboration with communities.
This also calls for the speaking of one language among officials in the provinces to ensure that everyone is pulling in the same direction.
It is welcome that the provincial development coordinators are in place, but the work starts now for them, otherwise they risk having the developmental programme falling behind.
The newly appointed provincial development coordinators are Mr Paul Nyoni for Bulawayo, Mr Tafadzwa Muguti for Harare, Mr Abiot Marongwe (Midlands), Mr Tavabarira Kutamahufa (Mashonaland East) and Mr Timothy Tigere (Mashonaland Central).
Others are Mr Josphat Jaji, Dr Jefter Sakupwanya, Ms Sithandiwe Ncube and Ms Latiso Dhlamini.
Online Reporter