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A YEAR IN OFFICE: Achievements of the LCD Government June, 2002 – June, 2003 |
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The Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) won the General Elections held in May, 2002 and formed a government in June that year. As part of its endeavour to constantly and thoroughly scrutinize its own performance, the Government took a decision to assess the achievements that it had made by June 2003, a year later. This paper is a report on these key achievements. It is divided into six main topics, namely, Infrastructure, Established Institutions, Policies Completed and Laws Passed, Bilateral and Other Agreements, How Have Basotho Benefited, and The International Arena. 1. Infrastructure
Government has made major strides
in the provision and extension of infrastructure. Notably, the second phase
of the development of the LNDC Complex in Maseru was completed, as well as
Phase III of the Qacha’s Nek Industrial Park. Furthermore, Bedco’s
Botha-Bothe Industrial Park complex was completed, providing more than 40
office and workshop spaces, as well as the construction of a
state-of-the-art Vehicle Testing Station at Ha Foso. An extensive network of
national and secondary roads was constructed throughout the country, such as
the following: Motsekuoa-Matelile, Mahlabatheng-Ha ’Mantšebo, Ha
’Majane-Kolo-Makintane, Ha Mpiti-White Hill, and Botha-Bothe-Oxbow. Many of
the urban roads in Maseru now have street lighting. In addition, bridges
were built at Tsoaing, Likhetla and Liphiring, together with twenty
footbridges and a host of rural roads. In terms of educational infrastructure, 88 new schools were built, with a total of 616 classrooms, as well as more than 110 administration blocks, 116 kitchen stores, 1,240 pupils’ toilets and 149 classrooms at existing schools. In addition, construction of a leisure resort was completed at Mohale, Thaba-Chitja, adding to the tourism infrastructure in the country. Communications infrastructure has also been added to, with two radio transmitters being installed in Mokhotlong and Mafeteng, while Qacha’s Nek, Thaba-Tseka and Mokhotlong residents now have access to telecommunications services. Furthermore, three television transmitters were installed in the Berea Plateau, Chafo in Leribe and in Mafeteng, thus increasing the reach of the local television service. 2. Established institutionsA number of institutions were established during the period in question, and will help to improve various services to the Nation: The Lesotho Revenue Authority (LRA) is now operational, meaning that Government will be able to improve its revenue collection substantially. The Authority’s source of funding is a percentage of the revenue it collects, which gives it an incentive to collect significant amounts every year. With the establishment of the Labour Appeal Court and the Industrial Peace and Advisory Promotion Unit (IPAPU), the Government is now better able to assure Basotho employees and their employers of the protection of their labour and related rights. In addition, the Police Complaints Authority was formed, which will act as a watchdog over the conduct of the LMPS. All these developments point to major steps in devising an enabling environment for Basotho to develop and prosper. 3. Policies Completed and Laws PassedIn keeping with its commitment to improve gender relations in the country, Cabinet approved a National Gender Policy that forms a framework for the development of more balanced gender relations in Lesotho. Furthermore, the Sexual Offences Act 2002 was enacted, which radically alters the conception and treatment of sexual offences in and outside the home, among others. This will assist law enforcement and related services to conclusively deal with hitherto intractable cases such as marital rape and other forms of sexual violence. Three other laws were passed: Namely, the Public Holidays (Amendment) Act 2002, Stock Theft (Amendment) Act 2002 and the Appropriation Act 2003/4. The Higher Education Bill 2002 has been revised and returned to the National Assembly for debate. 4. Bilateral and other Agreements
A number of agreements have been
signed with other countries, which will help significantly in enabling the
Government to reach its development targets: Economic and Technical
Cooperation Agreements were signed with Botswana and the People’s Republic
of China; a Memorandum of Understanding on Least Development Countries
Initiatives has been signed with the Canadian Government; Lesotho and
Germany signed a Cooperation Agreement; Lesotho and the European Union (EU)
signed a National Indicative Programme, releasing a grant of M890 Million
over five years (2002-2007); and an agreement with the Swiss Government,
spanning two years (2003-2005), will release M13 Million. Moreover, the
Government’s consistent pursuance of a more prudent fiscal and economic
programme has seen Lesotho receive a high and positive B+ rating from Fitch
International, which will enable her to secure loans at more concessionary
rates than most developing countries. The drought has had an adverse effect on Lesotho, with several hundred thousand Basotho requiring support and assistance. Most at risk are the children orphaned by HIV and AIDS, those afflicted by the virus, and the elderly. Lesotho received assistance from 14 countries and international organisations to help feed these and other vulnerable groups. Lesotho and the United Nations (UN) Habitat signed an Agreement for Technical and Financial Support, worth M1.4 Million, for upgrading informal settlements. 5. How have Basotho Benefited?
It is instructive to examine the
many ways in which Basotho have directly benefited from the acts of this
Government, because it shows the usefulness of the developments that have
been made so far: As the saying goes, “justice delayed is justice denied.”
Lesotho has made good progress in the processing of matters before the
Courts of Law, with the result that 368 out of 625 criminal and civil cases
were concluded. In addition, the employment level in the fast-growing
manufacturing sector increased by over four percent, from 44,500 to 46,306.
Furthermore, 1,334 youths are now employed in land rehabilitation works
countrywide, under a project financed by the UNDP. A major boost to gender
relations is that Lesotho now has 26 women Parliamentarians; six of them are
Ministers. More than 14,212 underprivileged Basotho children received bursaries for study at higher Primary and Secondary school levels. A total of 5,652 independent caterers were engaged to provide meals in the Free Primary Education Programme (FPEP), thus enabling a substantial number of Basotho to make a living, and ensuring that Basotho children are assured of at least one healthy meal a day. In fact, more than 1,100 Primary schools, with a total population of 190,000 pupils, benefited from the Emergency Primary School Feeding (EPSF) programme. Furthermore, an average of 90,000 households countrywide were supplied with food commodities aimed at families that are unable to feed themselves; and more than 300 community support groups were created in more than 40 Constituencies. The support groups are aimed at identifying families and individuals in need, so that they can be given prompt and appropriate assistance. A total of 7,340 additional households now enjoy access to electricity; more than 57,000 people in 85 villages countrywide have access to potable water; and more than 220 households were provided with loans to construct ventilated improved pit latrines (VIPs). In recognition of the severe impact that HIV and AIDS are having on the Basotho Nation, the ANTI-retroviral drug, nevirapine, is now universally available to pregnant women for the prevention of the mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of the virus. Five and a half million condoms were procured and distributed, and 5,700 home-based care kits were distributed to support groups and home-based caregivers. 6. The International Arena
In a positive sign of how far she
has come since the troubled times in September 1998, Lesotho was elected to
the Chair of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation (OPDSC).
It is in no small way a direct result of the successfully managed and
executed General Elections, which were globally acclaimed to have been a
fair representation of the electorate’s will. Moreover, it can now be said,
with all confidence, that some Ministers of His Majesty’s Government have
firmly established themselves as authorities in a number of socio-economic
arenas, more especially in SADC and the AU. Of course, the Government’s
dogged pursuit of those who seek or accept bribes and those who offer them
has set a powerful global standard for others to follow. It has also sent a
clear and chilling warning to multinational corporations that, no matter how
economically and politically powerful they are, they can be successfully
brought to book for the greedy acts that encourage and entrench corruption
in poorer economies, even by a small country such as ours. Internationally,
the continuing anti-corruption cases in Lesotho are now being used as
trend-setting case studies and resource material in various anti-corruption
fora. The establishment of the Directorate of Corruption and Economic
Offences (DCOE) is another tangible sign of this Government’s unswerving
commitment to driving out corruption in all its forms from our society.
On the formal international arena,
Lesotho has borne witness to epoch-making visits from some of the world’s
most renowned figures. These include:
This year, the Government
finalised and adopted National and Ministerial Goals and Objectives, which
provide a framework for the work of Government at national and Ministerial
level. This development, together with the performance assessment exercise
that forms the subject of this report, is solid evidence of how seriously
the Government takes its pledge to develop Lesotho in the most equitable,
effective and affordable manner possible. The live transmissions of Members
of Cabinet addressing the Nation about the goals and objectives, and on
performance at Ministry and National levels, have contributed to the
development of a culture of political transparency and openness in Lesotho.
The imminent finalisation of the
Vision 2020 Document and the adoption of the Poverty Reduction Strategy
Paper (PRSP) and the Public Sector Improvement and Reform Programme (PSIRP)
have much improved the national mood. Internally, the clear evidence of the
new, soul-searching, self-questioning and self-assessing culture that is
developing within our Government, has boosted Public Servants’ morale
immeasurably. It has added a new vibrancy and vigour to the work of the
Public Service as a whole. Given the above evidence, there is no doubt that
the first twelve months of the LCD Government have laid a firm foundation
for the achievement of the goals and objectives it has set itself.
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| SOURCE: THE PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE |