FOR a long time now, members of Parliament representing rural-based constituencies have expressed concern over the equal allocation of the Constituency Development Fund pegged at K1.3 million.
The million-dollar question to ask is: Is increasing CDF for rural constituencies the answer to tackle development at an even scale?
MPs argue that the CDF allocation should be increased for the rural constituencies as their demands to meet development targets remain high and challenging unlike their counterparts in urban-based constituencies.
This matter was once again raised during the third session of the 11th National Assembly, where it was felt that an increment in CDF for rural constituencies was needed to quicken the pace of addressing development.
The MPs’ argument is valid in that the rural constituencies, compared to urban ones, have a geographical challenge while poverty levels are high in these areas and generally development is still lagging behind.
Roads, education and health infrastructure in the rural areas still demand adequate attention and it is only a change in the allocation that can add impetus to steer development.
Mulumemui Imenda, the Alliance for Democracy and Development (ADD) MP for Luena, has aired her thoughts on this issue.
Ms Imenda observes that rural constituencies need more funds because addressing development in the rural area requires more sacrifice both in terms of transport costs and the actual implementation of various projects.
She observes that unlike the urban constituencies where MPs can lobby various stakeholders under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement, this is none-existent in rural areas.
“There are several challenges in rural areas: Poverty is high, infrastructure development is at a slow pace and we are not addressing these issues on an equal scale compared to our counterparts in the urban areas, that is why it is justifiable that the CDF for us running rural constituencies is increased,” she says.
Her sentiments have been shared by Patriotic Front (PF) Lupososhi MP Chungu Bwalya, who also believes that development in rural constituencies, like his, can be effectively achieved under a revised system of CDF disbursement.
Mr Bwalya notes that increasing CDF is the realistic approach to tackle development more effectively.
“The rural constituencies are not privileged in terms of investment from the private sector, which is not the case in urban constituencies where our colleagues are able to lobby for partnerships with private companies to help in various areas,” he says.
Private sector participation helps to drive development and this is the advantage that most urban constituencies have compared to their rural counterparts.
Participation of the private sector in rural areas is non-existent or, if it does, it is at a minimal scale compared to urban areas, where the private sector plays a key role in various projects that benefit the communities such as education, health and other key economic areas.
Therefore, the call for increased CDF allocation to rural constituencies can help to address development at an improved scale, thereby benefiting the targeted groups.
Vitalis Mooya, the UPND MP for Moomba in Southern Province backed the idea of increasing the CDF allocation to rural constituencies, saying this would ease the challenges incurred to record meaningful development.
“Once this is done, it will help us a lot because most of us running rural constituencies face serious developmental challenges unlike our colleagues in the urban setting. Our needs vary. For instance, in urban areas most road rehabilitation works are undertaken by the central Government while in the rural areas, feeder roads have to be worked on using the CDF allocation,” he said.
While MPs in rural constituencies have to focus much attention and utilisation of their CDF on various projects, their urban counterparts have the comfort to spare these funds for other developmental issues.
This may seem as an advantage to MPs in urban locations but it definitely places those in rural settings at a disadvantage.
For the sake of fairness, increasing CDF allocation is another way of ensuring that development in the rural areas is spurred.
This observation was also echoed during the previous parliamentary proceedings, where Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda said he was concerned that rural constituencies with the magnitude of challenges they incurred, were apportioned the same amount as those in urban areas.
“Allocating CDF equally to all constituencies is not fair, rural constituencies face serious challenges compared to urban-based constituencies. We hope the relevant parliamentary committee will guide us on this issue and how we can go about it to ensure there is fair distribution of resources,” Mr Chikwanda said.
To this effect, Mr Chikwanda said the Government would consider increasing the CDF allocation to rural-based constituencies.
Mr Chikwanda said Cabinet would seek the guidance of parliamentary committees on the matter as a way of enhancing an all-inclusive governance approach.
This development will add impetus to various projects that the Government has embarked on such as those targeting roads, health and education infrastructural development.
The key economic sectors are the ones lagging behind in terms of development and if CDF allocations are offered differently – it will definitely help spread development evenly.
The idea behind the CDF is to decentralise operations of the Government and various undertakings on issues of development and it is viewed by many experts locally and internationally, that it is a prudent way to spend public resources despite the misuse reported from areas.
If the step to increase the allocation to rural constituencies is undertaken, the Government should see to it that strict guidelines are put in place to ensure the use of this facility is for the intended group of people in society.
It will not serve the intended purpose, if this measure is undertaken and abuse of the funds continues as is the case now. Therefore, wider consultation with stakeholders is required before a final decision is arrived at but all-in-all, there is justification for calls to increase the allocation judging by the high poverty levels in rural areas and the slow pace at which development is taking shape.
