Liberia: UNDP Increases Support to Decentralization – As Rivercess County Service Center Receives Us82,000 Solar Panel for Power Generation

Cestos City — The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) with support from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has turned over Solar Panel System to the Rivercess County local authority for the smooth running of the Rivercess County Service Center valued at eighty-two thousand five United States Dollars.

The solar renewable energy system consists of 74 pieces of solar panel mounted at the rooftop of the CSC building, along with storage cabinets for containing 24 Lithium batteries and other accessories with a capacity of 12 kilowatts. The system built in Germany was procured and installed by UNDP through a local vendor called EcoPower Liberia.

According to a press release from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the intervention of UNDP is in response to an appeal made by the MIA calling for solar energy as the best option for the sustainability of CSC operations.

The County Service Center (CSC) initiated in 2015, is one of the visible products of the Decentralization program which enables citizens and other residents to obtain basic documentation services related to licenses, certificates and permits in the counties without traveling to Monrovia, thus improving access to services, reducing costs and stress associated with travels. Services offered by at least 14 Ministries, Agencies, and Commissions (MACs) include traditional and Western Marriage Certificates, Business Registration of all categories, Birth Registration, and Psychosocial Services, among others.

However, since the establishment of these centers between June 2015 and |December 2017, assessments have revealed that regular electricity supply has been highlighted as one of the major challenges facing the sustainability of County Service Centers (CSC) nationwide.

Turning over the solar panel Friday, August 6, 2021 in Cestos, the Team Lead for Governance and Public Institutions Portfolio of UNDP Mr. James Monibah said the project is valued at eighty-two thousand five hundred ($82,500.00) United States Dollars.

Mr. Monibah said funding was provided through UNDP’s Solar for Health Program which is currently providing similar solar panel system to government-run health facilities in the Counties.

He said though UNDP has been focused on providing electricity to health facilities under its Solar for Health Program, it has realized that County Service Centers were heavily challenged with the lack of regular electricity. Mr. Monibah was accompanied by Moses Massah, Engery Environment Program Specialist of UNDP.

Commissioning the project, Deputy Internal Affairs Minister for Research and Planning Honorable Olayee S. Collins lauded UNDP for the partnership and a much-needed initiative.

Deputy Minister conveyed Minister Varney A. Sirleaf’s excitement for such an intervention, which helps, alleviates the administrative burden of the center. He reminded the local leadership of its responsibility of ensuring the protection of the system.

“Rivercess which is the first beneficiary under the project is now under obligation to prove whether partners should continue the project in other counties by taking care of the solar panel for a longer life span,” said Collins.

Minister Collins said the Government will be motivated to engage partners for the provision of many basic services if the end-users and local leaderships take ownership of interventions made to improve their lives.

He used the occasion to call for more donor support for the decentralization program including support to the implementation of the Local Government Act of 2018.

On behalf of the local leadership, Rivercess County Inspector and Acting Superintendent Mr. Daniel Tokoe Doe described the project as huge and timely. According to Doe, it was like a dream to him that Rivercess County Service Center to be the first to receive such a magnanimous gesture and attributed it to God’s divine intervention.

The River Cess County Inspector was quick to recognize the efforts of the Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Internal Affairs in selecting Rivercess to benefit under the solar project which he believes will now save government some money that was used to purchase fuel and the repair generator. Hon. Tokoe Doe assured the Government and partner the safety of the equipment.

For his part the coordinator of the River Cess County Service center Mr. Eric G. Peterson expressed joy over the installation of the solar system on the building which he believes will enhance the smooth running of the facility as well promote timely reporting as the lack of electricity will no longer be used as an excuse on the part of any Ministry, Agency and Commission.

Since the opening of the River Cess County Service center on December 8, 2017, operations at the service center has not been as expected due to limited financial resources to fuel the generator to provide 24 hours electricity.

“Though the Government has been making some budgetary allotments for maintenance and purchase of fuel, such allocations have been limited to run generator throughout”. Mr. Peterson said.

He further stressed that the constraints faced my MACs in compiling the report will now be history if the delay has been due to lack of electricity as the building is now equipped with running water and 24 hours electricity.

The CSC Coordinator express optimism that with the uninterrupted electricity supply, the number of service users will increase. He praised Internal Affairs Minister Varney A. Sirleaf for the leadership at the MIA especially with his level of advocacy in support of decentralization.

The release said citizens who spoke at the program expressed joy for the provision of solar renewable energy which is predicted to last for at least ten years.

By FrontPageAfrica.