PESHAWAR: The US agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Government have started training of the newly elected councillors from merged areas on local government (LG) systems.

The training, supported under the USAID-funded and UNDP-implemented Merged Areas Governance Project (MAGP) took place in Peshawar with a total of 262 tehsil councillors, including 49 women councillors, as well as councillors representing religious minorities from districts Bajaur and Mohmand, said a press release issued here on Sunday.

The training was arranged especially for the LG representatives from merged districts because the Local Government (LG) system has been introduced for the first time there in the history of Pakistan, said a press release issued here. “This is a learning curve for the newly elected councillors, and we support them to understand the devolution of power, the structure and composition of local governments, and the authority and responsibilities of the elected representatives,” said Raluca Eddon, UNDP’s Programme Manager for the Merged Areas Governance Project.

The Secretary for KP Local Government, Elections and Rural Development Syed Zaheer-ul-Islam Shah appreciated the participants’ passion towards learning and said that the provincial government had allocated Rs 37 billion development budget for the local bodies to improve service delivery.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022