In something of a historic visit, not seen since the Solomon’s colonial era, the Prime Minister the Hon Manasseh Sogavare, led a high-powered Government delegation on a brief visit into the Guadalcanal hinterlands, yesterday, to reach out to the rural communities amidst the Democratic Coalition for Change Government’s intentions to announce increases to budgetary allocations for rural infrastructure developments during the current parliament session.
In making the trip ahead of Parliament’s meeting next week, the Prime Minister aimed to demonstrate putting the Central Highlands of Guadalcanal on the development map and underscore the Government’s striving to redesign strategic policies aimed to ensure the benefits of the national budgets goes right to the people in the rural areas.
At the Haiparia Seventh Day Adventist Primary School an announcement was given of a funding package for the transformation of the poorly staffed primary school into a modern boarding secondary school and a new church building for the community.
During the occasion of the historic visit to the Central Highlands, the Prime Minister revealed that his Government had increased budget funds on developments that directly affect rural people, especially infrastructure development.
He said, “The challenge of any government is making use of its meager resources to best benefit the rural populace and the government is, therefore, embarking on redesigning our policies, strategically, and better ensure our annual national budget allocations are reflected in the developments of rural communities”, he concluded
In another significant commentary, the Prime Minister announced the increased budget allocations for infrastructure development, through individual constituency offices, will enable each constituency to acquire its own machines for the construction of roads and be maintained by constituency offices under MID supervision
The Agriculture Minister, the Hon Dudley Kopu, who had accompanied the Prime Minister’s delegation on the trip, spoke to the community about the government’s ongoing assistance to projects in coffee farming in the Birao regions since 1989.
More recently, he mentioned the latest beneficiaries were the Labuhila Coffee Growers Association, who has been tasked, through a $300,000.00 project, to supply Guadalcanal and other provincial farmers with suitable coffee beans that would become seedling for other farmers throughout the country.
Minister Kopu advised local villagers that the unique climatic conditions of the highlands may prove to be a benefit in the future, when a reliable road is finally possible.
Source: Solomon Islands Government Press Release.
