Northern Province Permanent Secretary Bernard Mpundu has directed Council Secretaries in the region to expedite the submission of deliverables before the end of the year.
Mr Mpundu says this will enable districts to commence implementation of projects in January 2025.
He was speaking during the 2024 fourth quarter Provincial Development Coordinating Committee meeting held at the Provincial Planning Unit Conference Hall in Kasama today
“As we are all aware ,the introduction of (CDF) in Zambia has brought significant change in our districts, Northern Province inclusive and I would say the CDF is a flagship of the United Party for National Development government.
“I’m aware of some challenges faced during the implementation of the CDF especially with utilisation rate in comparison to the set targets,” he added.
Mr Mpundu has since urged responsible officers to ensure that prescribed guidelines are followed as well as ensuring that procurement processes are timely, of good quality and fairly priced.
The Permanent Secretary has also called for unity among Heads of government departments saying that is the only way to bring development to the province.
“Together we can build a province that thrives economically, socially, environmentally leaving a legacy for generations to come and this can only be achieved if we work together,” he advised.
Meanwhile Muchinga Province Permanent Secretary Henry Mukungule said the meetings are key in development.
Mr. Mukungule , during the same meeting, revealed that there is a need to take the meeting seriously adding that resolution to birth Muchinga Province from Northern province was made during a similar meeting, in the recent past..
“Northern Province was too big and so it was difficult to realise tangible development,but now that it was divided,we are now able to see development because each Province has its own funding, i would say the separation of these provinces was as a result of this meeting,” Mr Mukungule said.
The Provincial Development Coordinating Committee is a quarterly meeting aimed at reviewing progress made in the implementation of government and other programs.
