Training boost for Ward Committees

Secretaries of Kouga’s Ward Committees after their three-day training in office administration. With them is Ward 7 Councillor Bulelwa Koliti (far right, seated).

Secretaries of Ward Committees in Kouga sharpened their office skills when they participated in a three-day training workshop organised by the municipality.

The training focused mainly on secretarial functions such as minute-taking, filing and project identification and prioritisation.

Kouga Speaker Magdalene Dlomo, under whose office the Ward Committees reside, said the aim was to enhance the functionality of the committees by strengthening their administrative arms.

“The secretariat is the engine room of any organisation and without capacity in that area, there is always a risk of miscommunication of resolutions and loss of valuable organisational information.

“Ward Committees communicate to us on behalf of communities. It is therefore important that what is captured and receive by us, is exactly what the people said they wanted. Training of this nature strengthens communication and our democracy,” she said.

The trainees, guided by veteran local government facilitator Charles Willemse, now boast SAQA Authorised NQF Level 4 certificates in their areas of training.

The Speaker added that the skills obtained by these individuals may be applied in other areas of work, including in private tasks.

“In this way, we are contributing towards skills development of the community and not just internally for our employees,” she concluded.