These draft laws are the Local Governance Act, Financial Management Act and the (Unified Services) and Employment Act, informed Governance Coordinator in the Department of Local Government, Robert Hill.
He said that efforts are also underway to engage a consultancy firm to undertake the organisational assessment of the local authorities, while a committee has been meeting to look at a Municipal Performance Measurement and Reporting System, which will enhance efficiency, service delivery and capacity, among the authorities.
In the meantime, the Department of Local Government and the Social Development Commission are working to finalise a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will define the scope of work, under a renewed partnership, in managing governance issues in each parish.
The broadcast of meetings of Council is high on the agenda, as is E-Governance best practices, Mr. Hill said.
Already under the reform process, the payment for street lighting, solid waste collection and standpipes have been returned to the local authorities and efforts have been strengthened to train and educate the local authorities and citizens on a number of issues, including the new Building Code, in the thrust to enforce parish council regulations.
In addition, Local Public Accounts and Reform Committees have been established in most local authorities and a new Financial Management System (FMIS) is being fast-tracked.
The need to clearly define the role and responsibility of Councillors and Councils has been put forward for attention by Minister of State with Responsibility for Local Government, Robert Montague.
Mr. Montague, while addressing a meeting of the St. James Parish Council's Disaster Preparedness Committee in Montego Bay recently, said that the move would increase the effectiveness of the authorities in managing the affairs of citizens.
He said that draft Constitution amendments have been completed and the basic legal framework for Local Government were being established and "presently, we are far advanced in the drafting of the new Local Authority's Act, which will see some 17 pieces of legislation being repealed and rolled into one Act, as there is a lot of confusion . so we can move on to defining roles and responsibilities of local authorities as well as that of Councillors."
Mr. Montague informed that an effort has been ongoing to have Parish Councils bring their accounts up to date, with special permission given for them to employ additional persons to complete the task, if necessary. He has pointed out there would be sanctions against Parish Councils that fail to satisfy this requirement.
"If you cannot give account for people's money, you must not get anymore. Come the first of November, any Council whose statements are not up to date, are not getting more of Government's money," he stated.
The primary objective of Local Government Reform is to create a strong, viable and effective system of Local Government, which will deepen the democratic process and facilitate the empowerment of citizens, by enabling them to participate more fully and directly in the process of governance and in the management of their own affairs.
This reform period, which has been extended to September 2010, will provide more autonomy, resources, and greater responsibility to local authorities island wide.
"People would like to know that their street lights work, know that the drains are clean, know that roads are repaired, and know that in the case of an emergency, they can depend on their local authorities," Mr. Montague stated.
"We want to put that power into the hands of the local authorities and the local councils, so that the citizens can get the sort of service that they pay for," he added.
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Quelle/Source: Jamaica Information Service, 02.05.2009
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