NW records 46.5% Public Investment Budget execution in first semester.

Hon Wallang made the disclosure while presiding over the first semester 2024 regional participatory follow-up committee meeting in Bamenda on July 25. 

The follow-up meeting brought together representatives from the seven Divisions of the North West Region.

In his key note address, Hon Walllang Richard called on all present to seek local solutions to local problems in their various communities. 

To him, the North West must not depend on outsiders to achieve targets especially with the ongoing crisis, but can rather use local solutions to solve certain problems.

During the meeting, the various stakeholders presented their level of award and presentation of PIB projects earmarked for 2024. 

An issue of primary concern during the meeting was the delay in completing the referral hospital in the region, a matter, which the Members of Parliament present, agreed to take back to the authorities in charge. 

Hon Wallang also promised to do his best to ensure that the region meets up with its 2024 target. 

"We will do everything to make sure we meet up with our target, especially with our slogan, 'local problems, local solutions'. The government is still struggling to meet up with 2023 projects, because we have outstanding bills which are still in the treasury," he said.

Speaking to the press after the meeting, Hon Wallang called on the population of the region to collaborate with the contractors so as to ensure the smooth execution of projects.

“We should do everything to help our contractors with the execution of these projects, because this is our share of the national cake. And this national cake is going down to the population," he said, adding that, "like the Head of State said, no village, no Subdivision, no Division and no Region will be left behind".

With regards to ongoing projects, Hon Wallang said due to the insecurity in the region, several contractors find it difficult to work. He, however, beckoned on the contractors to be resilient and for the various stakeholders to collaborate with these contractors.

"We are begging on the contractors to be resilient; several of them complain of insecurity in the region, so we can only beg them,” he said, adding that “if you look at so many projects we are executing in the North West, you can never compare it to other regions because of the insecurity".

"It is now left for us, the stakeholders, and the civil society to do everything to ensure we enjoy this national cake. If the population can help and give us peace, we will deliver what they want," he noted.

Hon Wallang also called on the North West to be more involved in development projects and activities which can make them self-reliant.

“Some of you can also enter the chain of execution. The contractors, when it comes to certain areas, they do recruit and if the youth are available for recruitment, they can receive wages which will help them for many other things," he advised, adding that, "our youth need to be vibrant, they should not only sit and wait for competitive entrance exams into the public service to be launched to pay and write, but they should embrace the entrepreneurship spirit, which will also make them self-reliant".

A total of 561 projects were allocated in the region for the 2024 financial year, with a budget of 14.5 billion FCFA. Among them, 53.7% have been awarded. 

This story was first published in The Guardian Post issue No:3186 of Thursday August 01, 2024