Enhancement workers to be employed in Region Nine

The Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development plans to employ Community Enhancement Workers (CEWs) across several Region Nine villages to preserve and enhance their respective infrastructural aesthetics.  The initiative is also expected to impact the safety and wellbeing of residents.

Minister Hon. Nigel Dharamlall made this announcement during an outreach to the Region last week. The Minister said at least five CEWs will be employed under the Community Infrastructure Improvement Project (CIIP) in 2021.

“My Ministry, almost immediately will employ five enhancement workers in the communities where we will pay them as soon as they are selected from the relevant stakeholders to start working. Moving forward, we intend to increase the number of employees,” he said.

The initiative will not only create jobs, boosting villages and regional economies, but preserve aesthetics that will benefit tourism.  Villages such as Yupukari, Awaruwaunau, Fairview, and Massara are among those expected to benefit.

Minister Dharamlall told residents this initiative is among several plans his Ministry has to help transform the Region in every sector.

“We want to do much more for our people and so despite, the Government approving the National 2020 Budget; it is just an Emergency Budget which does not allow us to do what needs to be done now,” he added.

CIIP started in 2014 and was modified in 2015 to decentralise resources to the local democratic organs. This remodelling has seen the day-to-day management of the workers transferred from the Ministry to the local democratic areas via the Community Enhancement Initiative, which falls under the CIIP.

The CIIP also enables the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils to provide services to the communities and to encourage citizens to pay their rates and taxes to facilitate maintenance of crucial structures and other development works.