Blessings Chidakwa and John Murwira
NYAMINYAMI Rural District Council has proposed a $100 000 increase in next year’s budget following a poor performance this year. The RDC is proposing a $1,7 million budget, up from $1,6 million for this year. In an interview yesterday, council chairman Mr Lovemore Negande said this year’s budget was performing below expectation. He said ratepayers were failing to pay rates.

“The actual proposed budget for next year is $1 652 971, the current one stands at $1 569 057. This year, the actual revenue we received as at December 13, 2017 is $776 300, so our budget performance is at 49 percent,” he said.

Mr Negande attributed the decision to raise next year’s budget to Statutory Instrument 87 of 2017.

“We increased our budget due to Statutory Instrument 87 of 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement: Rural District Councils, which prescribed salaries and allowances and other conditions of service applicable to all employees of rural district councils in grade one to grade nine with effect from August 1, 2017,” he said.

Mr Negande said Zinara had also increased their road maintenance grant, leading to the increased budget. “This year’s road maintenance grant allocation from Zinara is$338 000 and for next year its $500 000,” he said.

The increase in the allocation from Zinara was as a result of the National Road Condition Survey undertaken by Government in 2016, which saw the road network covered by Nyaminyami RDC increasing from 168km to 300km. The road maintenance allocation to road authorities is based on the size of road network. Mr Negande said the council was appealing to its residents and clients to pay their rates.

“The council depends on the revenue for service delivery. With ratepayers’ maximum support we can achieve a better budget performance in 2018,” he said.

Mr Negande said council had also embraced the ease-of-doing-business approach.

“Council has adopted an ease -of-doing-business approach on allocation of business stands and as such the period for allocation has been reduced from three months to five days,” he said.

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