Local authority councillors of the Otjiwarongo Municipality on Friday tabled their municipality’s 2022/2023 capital and expenditure budget of more than N.dollars 158 million.

The total budget of N.dollars 158.8 million was tabled by the town’s mayor, Gottlieb Shivute, at a council meeting.

Shivute, in his statement, said the council has a huge task of improving the lives of residents of the town, which is mainly through supplying them with quality municipality services and modern infrastructure.

“Thus, an amount of N.dollars 19.4 million is strictly set for capital projects, while N.dollars 139.4 million is for the operational expenditure, including the maintenance of the existing infrastructure of the town,” said Shivute.

The mayor also told the meeting that the municipality agreed during its deliberations that in the 2022/2023 financial year, very little or no increases should be imposed on the rates and taxes mostly on sewage tariffs, refuse removal, solid waste management, property charges and on cemetery and grave services found in the jurisdiction of the municipality.

A five per cent increase was however taken into consideration and approved by the council on water for consumption, and this increase is effective from 01 June 2022, he said.

“Hence the municipality and its full council also agreed to invest N.dollars 4.1 million in the same water infrastructure development of the town,” said Shivute.

The road network of town was allocated N.dollars 6.4 million for upkeep, while N.dollars 5 million was availed for the public market platforms, where the general public operates from, he added.

N.dollars 3 million was also budgeted for the construction of a new fire station and emergency response building to be built near the municipality headquarters in town this year, said Shivute.

The budget will be forwarded to the Minister of Urban and Rural Development, Erastus Uutoni, for final approval before it is implemented, Shivute noted.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency