By Golden Kang’oma

Salima, January 30, Mana: Salima District Council, in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism, is in the process of having a public beach in Traditional Authority (TA) Maganga as a means of maximizing local revenue collection and tourism attraction.

The plan was disclosed Monday at Mponela, Dowa during the council’s budget review meeting with the National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC).

Salima District Council Chief Planning Officer, Lonia Muyeriwa said the plan is an addition to the stadium, which is being constructed with Governance to Enable Service Delivery (GESD) funds, with an aim of boosting the council’s revenue.

“Having a public beach is one of our investment goals. We understand that this will help us have a diversified local revenue base once it’s done and will also help the local communities enjoy the beach,” she said.

Salima District Council Director of Finance, Muhamudu Assan said as a way of ensuring that more people do not struggle to find their way in the district, they also intend to construct and rehabilitate some roads in the district.

NLGFC Financial Analyst, Duncan Macheso, hailed the Council for its plans and asked it to aim at investing more on projects that will help in local revenue collection.

“It should not be all about spending, the Council must have a wide base of diversified local revenue. The best interest of the Council should be on communities they are serving," he said.

Key aspects of the budget highlighted during the meeting include revenue sources such as locally generated funds, central government transfers, development funds like Constituency Development Fund and District Development Fund and donor funds for programmes like GESD and the Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme (CSPWP).

The budget hearing process underscores the commitment of both NLGFC and individual district councils to responsible financial governance. It lays the foundation for a more prosperous and accountable local government system in Malawi.

Salima district has projected local revenue at K413, 617, 160 in the 2024/2025 financial year.