Local Government Staff Participate in Virtual Country Level Workshop

Belmopan. September 30, 2021. 1:00 p.m.

This week, personnel from Belize’s nine municipalities are participating in a three-day virtual Country Level Workshop hosted by the Commonwealth Local Government Forum–Caribbean (CLGF-Caribbean).

The workshop is focused on developing the capacity of key personnel, including city and town administrators, finance directors, accountants, and municipal planners, in managing service delivery and resources based on the economic and financial constraints caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a pre-requisite to the workshop, participants had already completed a certification course on municipal finances, which was facilitated by the World Bank Institute (WBI) in August and September 2021. Both the Country Level Workshop and WBI Certification Course are components of a broader regional project entitled Regional Capacity Building in Municipal Finances Project.

This regional project is aimed at building capacity at the local level for improved and inclusive municipal planning and financial management, consistent with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The final components of the project, which will be completed by August 2022, will include one regional workshop for four representatives from each participating borrowing member country (BMC) and the development of business plans for the participating municipalities making this request.

This project is being funded by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) in support of the Commonwealth Local Government Fund-Caribbean and will benefit seven of the CDB’s BMC, Belize included.

The Ministry of Rural Transformation, Community Development, Labour and Local Government is responsible for overseeing and providing technical assistance to municipal governments. The ministry is collaborating with the CDB, the CLGF-Caribbean, and the Belize Mayors’ Association to ensure that the project is effectively implemented.

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