Proceedingsnord of the GENERAL CONFERENCE of LOCAL COUNCILS
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
REPUBLIC OF CAMEROON REPUBLIQUE DU CAMEROUN Peace - Work - Fatherland Paix - Travail - Patrie ------------------------- ------------------------- MINISTRY OF DECENTRALIZATION MINISTERE DE LA DECENTRALISATION AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT ET DU DEVELOPPEMENT LOCAL Extrême PROCEEDINGSNord OF THE GENERAL CONFERENCE OF LOCAL COUNCILS Nord Theme: Deepening Decentralization: A New Face for Local Councils in Cameroon Adamaoua Nord-Ouest Yaounde Conference Centre, 6 and 7 February 2019 Sud- Ouest Ouest Centre Littoral Est Sud Published in July 2019 For any information on the General Conference on Local Councils - 2019 edition - or to obtain copies of this publication, please contact: Ministry of Decentralization and Local Development (MINDDEVEL) Website: www.minddevel.gov.cm Facebook: Ministère-de-la-Décentralisation-et-du-Développement-Local Twitter: @minddevelcamer.1 Reviewed by: MINDDEVEL/PRADEC-GIZ These proceedings have been published with the assistance of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in the framework of the Support programme for municipal development (PROMUD). GIZ does not necessarily share the opinions expressed in this publication. The Ministry of Decentralisation and Local Development (MINDDEVEL) is fully responsible for this content. Contents Contents Foreword ..............................................................................................................................................................................5 Part One .........................................................................6 Official Opening Ceremony .............................................6 Welcome Address by Mr. Gilbert Tsimi Evouna, Government Delegate to the Yaounde City Council ............... 7 Keynote Address by Mr. Alioune Badiane .......................................................................................................................8 Speech by Mr. Georges Elanga Obam, Minister of Decentralization and Local Development (MINDDEVEL) 15 Opening Address by Mr. Joseph Dion Ngute, Prime Minister, Head of Government ..........................................19 Part two .......................................................................24 WORKSHOP 1: Normative and Institutional Framework Applicable to Councils ...............................................25 WORKSHOP 2: Devolution of Powers ...........................................................................................................................35 WORKSHOP 3: Planning, Regional and Local Authorities’ Cooperation and Local Development ...................41 Theme 1: The Council Development Plan (CDP) ...................................................................................................41 Theme 2: Spatial Planning of Local Development ................................................................................................45 WORKSHOP 4: Council Resources ...............................................................................................................................54 Theme 1: Quality Human Resource: An Important Component for the Realization of the Missions Assigned to Councils ..................................................................................................................................................54 Theme 2: Council Financial Resources ..................................................................................................................59 Theme 3: Budgetary and Accounting Management of the Financial Resources of Regional and Local Authorities ....................................................................................................................................................................66 WORKSHOP 5: Local Governance .................................................................................................................................76 Theme: Local Governance: Principles Challenges and Tools .............................................................................76 Part three ....................................................................87 Declaration by Mayors and Government Delegates Who Attended the 1st General Conference of Local Councils ...............................................................................................................................................................................88 General Report ..................................................................................................................................................................89 Closing Speech of the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Represented by Mr. Bello Bouba Maigari, Minister of State, Minister of Tourism and Leisure ................................................................................................ 101 Abbreviations .................................................................................................................................................................. 103 Annexes .....................................................................104 | 3 General Conference of Local Councils Proceedings FOREWORD Foreword Deepening and accelerating decentralization to make local authorities more inclusive and sustainable development hubs at the grassroots and crucibles of local democracy is one of the major thrusts of the Seven-Year “Great Opportunities” term of office of the Head of State, His Excellency Paul Biya. The holding, on the high-level instructions of the President of the Republic and effective chairmanship of the Prime Minister, Head of Government, on 6 and 7 February 2019, of the first “General Conference of Local Councils”, following the creation of the Ministry of Decentralization and Local Development, appeared to be a concrete expression of the political will to give new impetus to the decentralization process. Under the theme “Deepening decentralization: a new face for local councils in Cameroon”, this Conference aimed to improve the organization and functioning of local councils to strengthen citizen participation and promote local development. The deliberations of the Conference, which brought together Cameroon’s 374 local authorities and other key players in the decentralization process, made it possible, through a participatory approach, to carry out an uncompromising diagnosis of the organization and functioning of the council institution and to identify effective strategies to enable it to fully play its role as a driving force for local development. In the aftermath of this very first Conference, I must discharge the pleasant duty of hailing the willingness and commitment of our national and international partners for a flawless organization of our deliberations. I congratulate the participants and the representatives of local authorities for their massive presence and their enriching and inspiring contributions. The results we have achieved will undoubtedly be capitalized for the establishment of Regions announced by the Head of State. It is now up to us, as prescribed by the Prime Minister, Head of Government, in his closing speech at the Conference, to transform the recommendations resulting from these important moments of reflection into concrete actions, through a synergistic approach, to achieve the building of a new face for local councils that we look forward to seeing. /- Georges Elanga Obam Minister of Decentralization and Local Development | 5 Part One Official Opening Ceremony On 6 and 7 February 2019, the Ministry of Decentralization and Local Development organized, on the instructions of the President of the Republic, the first General Conference of Local Councils, under the theme “Deepening decentralization: a new face for local councils in Cameroon”. The Conference was placed under the highly distinguished patronage of the President of the Republic, His Excellency Paul Biya and effectively chaired by the Prime Minister, Head of Government. These proceedings, which report on the unfolding of the General Conference of Cameroon’s Local Councils, comprise the under-mentioned three parts: Ô The official opening ceremony; Ô Deliberations in workshops; Ô The solemn closing ceremony. Opening ceremony Welcome Address by Mr. Gilbert Tsimi Evouna, Government Delegate to the Yaounde City Council Your Excellency the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Personal Representative of the Head of State, The Minister of Decentralization and Local Development, Honourable Ministers, The Governor of the Centre Region, The Senior Divisional Officer of Mfoundi Division, Fellow Government Delegates, Directors General, Mayors, Development Partners, Distinguished Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is a pleasure for the city of Yaounde to host today the first General Conference of Local Councils under the theme: “Deepening Decentralization: A New Face for Local Councils in Cameroon “. It is my duty, as the First Executive Head of the Host City, to wish all of you who have come from here and elsewhere to attend the Conference a warm welcome to Yaounde, the city of seven hills. Feel at ease, you’re home! You’re at home! Your Excellency, the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Honourable Ministers, Dear participants, It must be acknowledged that the Cameroon Council Institution, whose virtues the Head of State, His Excellency Paul Biya, had already magnified in 1987, in his book “Communal Liberalism”, has not yet fully got off the ground due to many