THE country’s 50 Constituencies now have a Constituency Office, along with Constituency Officers to undertake their responsibilities as provided for under the Constituency Development (CDF) Act 2023, the Minister for Rural Development, Rollen Seleso announced.
“I’m pleased to notify Parliament that one of the key requirements under the Act is for the establishment of the Constituency Development Office.
“Note that all of these have been established and the 50 Offices of the Constituencies, including the 50 Constituency Development Officers, Project Officers and Accountants are now in place and are now undertaking their role in their respective offices and constituencies,” Minister Seleso said when contributing to the debate on the Sine Die Motion to adjourn the 12th Parliament indefinitely after the passage of the 2025 Budget.
Minister Seleso capitalised on his contribution to the debate on the Sine Die Motion to update Parliament on the establishment of a Constituency Office and the appointment of Constituency Development Officers, which include a Constituency Development Officer (CDO), a Project Officer and an Accountant for each of the 50 constituencies.
He said the CDF Act 2023 provides for the management and regulative oversight on the utilisation of the CDF under the Constituency Development Programme.
Minister Seleso said the CDF Act 2023 is a progressive and forward-looking legislation and this means that whilst its implementation has already commenced, it may need some ‘settling-in period’ before it is fully utilised as intended.
He said all parties who are utilising the CDF may need some time to be socialised and made familiar with the provisions of the legislation for its effective implementation.
Minister Seleso said the Constituency Offices are the primary delivery and the primary operation structure of the Constituency Development Programme and on that note appealed to all constituents to get familiar with their respective Constituency officers and seek information on constituency matters through these officers.
The Minister said there may also be need for future reviews on some of its provisions when necessary to make it relevant to its context.
He also announced that MRD will work with the 50 Constituency Offices to develop a standard operation procedure to ensure that the Constituency Offices are administering and operating their functions within the provisions of the relevant regulation and rules, including that of the CDF Act 2023.
Minister Seleso highlighted that one of the other significant governance structures within the legislative framework of the CDF Act 2023 is the Constituency Development Committee (CDC).
He said the CDC is a critical governance structure for the constituency level for the planning, implementation and monitoring of the Constituency Development Programme.
“While it is in the early stage in terms of its setup, CDC is anticipated to play a critical role in the planning, implementation and monitoring of the Constituency Development Programme in all constituencies.”
Given the critical role and responsibilities of the CDC, Minister Seleso underscored the importance of those appointed to the committee to take their functions seriously and execute their mandate to serve their constituents in a more comprehensive, inclusive and non-discriminative way.
By IAN LADDS OSO
Solomon Star, Honiara
