Inshindo enters into partnership with Municipal Council and Department of Community Development
Last Updated on Wednesday, 14 July 2010 10:48 Written by Webmaster Thursday, 17 December 2009 00:00
About a year of consultation with the Municipal Council and the Department of Community Development in Kabwe culminated in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on 16 October 2009. The MOU establishes a partnership involving Inshindo Foundation and the two local and central government agencies for the delivery of the Preparation for Social Action Program in Kabwe District. Over 70 people including students, tutors, members of the Municipal Council, members of Resident Development Committees, staff of the Municipal Council and the Department of Community Development participated in the signing ceremony. Mr. Garth Pollock, Executive Director of Inshindo Foundation, Ms. Vivien Chikoti, Town Clerk of Kabwe Municipal Council, and Mrs. Judith Mbewe, Acting District Community Development Officer, signed on behalf of the three agencies.
In a presentation that preceded the signing of the agreement, Mr. Garth Pollock outlined Inshindo Foundation's vision of the contribution the PSA program can make in the development of Kabwe District. He stated that in order to reverse the cynicism and hopelessness that many communities’ experiences, development action must contribute to addressing one of the major challenges of community development which is the effective mobilisation of the local community in a manner that ensures increased ownership of the development process. He emphasized the crucial role that large numbers of young people that are participating in an educational process that prepares them to be agents of change can play in this process.
Speaking later, Mr. Daniel Mapulanga, Director of Development Planning for Kabwe Municipal Council, stated that partnerships with Civil Society Organisations such as Inshindo help the Council fulfil its mandate to provide community education services which it is unable to effectively offer due to limited resources and numerous pressing needs. And Community Development Officer Jane Nsansaula expressed the Department of Community Development eagerness to work with Inshindo Foundation in promoting a systematic process of non-formal education which is part of the mandate of the Department.
Through the MOU the three parties’ committed to working together in accompanying the PSA students in their study of the texts and implementation of community service projects. They will also collaborate in the mobilisation of resources for the group activities and will together offer a certificate of completion to the PSA students. The three agencies will meet twice a year to review the implementation of the Program and make necessary adjustments.