The Chairperson of the Erongo Regional Council (ERC), Benitha Imbamba, said service delivery and development can only be realised if the council has sufficient funds.
However, Imbamba said finances will never be enough, thus there is a need for a creative strategy to prioritise and deliver where there is a need.
She said this when tabling a N$156 million budget of the Erongo Regional Council for the 2024/25 fiscal year.
In a demonstration of its commitment to transparency and good governance, the ERC unveiled the budget in the presence of key stakeholders.
This is to encourage discussions on regional development and ensure stakeholders are well-informed.
Imbamba said their mandate as the Regional Council is to plan and develop the region sustainably for the benefit of the people by establishing, managing, and controlling settlement areas focusing on core services.
Imbamba said their unwavering mission is to coordinate and deliver quality and accessible services for the sustainable upliftment of the livelihood of the communities they serve through good governance and expedited service delivery.
She highlighted that the Council's mandate was not hindered by the waiting period for budget authorisation, as they were allowed to utilise 25% based on the previous year's budget.
"I know that many will question the timing, why the budget is being launched today—this is not to say, we are only going to be starting our activities now, NO. As you may know about the Government Budget processes, when the National Budget was tabled in the National Assembly by the Minister of Finance & Public Enterprises in March, we were provided a window, according to Treasury rules, where we were allowed to spend 25% of our total budget for the previous year. Therefore, what was presented earlier includes the expenditure of that specific 25%. Now, with the full approval of the current budget for this financial year, by the Ministry of Urban & Development earlier this month."
She further added that the council will move at an accelerated pace to ensure that they realise the target they have set for themselves to achieve by the end of the financial year.