National Association of Village Councils FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NAVCO YEAR END SNAPSHOT AND COMING VILLAGE COUNCIL ELECTIONS Upcoming village council election begin April 11, NAVCO encourages villagers to vote for the future development and welfare of the villages and not for the sake of political affiliations. NAVCO describes the progress made for strengthening local level governance to enhance national development; activities and issues occurring within the 193 Village Councils of the country of Belize. There is a growing need to resolve issues between village councils and area representatives. Village Council Elections begin April 11 and NAVCO looks forward to a continued strengthening of local governance as dictated by the Village Council Act and its regulations. Keeping in mind that we will have a new set of village council leaders representing 49% of the country’s population, In 1999, the Government of Belize passed the Village Councils Act (VCA), Chapter 88 of the Laws of Belize. This Act gave birth to the National Association of Village Councils (NAVCO). The Act gave Village Councils the legal authority to govern their own communities. The village Act also made provision for the formation of the District Associations of Village Councils (DAVCO). NAVCO is the national organization spearheading the development of rural communities. NAVCO seeks to improve the quality of life for rural communities as an advocate and with dialogue at all levels:
To develop and enhance rural leadership To ensure the viability of the Village Council Act To advocate for relevant and adequate services and assure effective and equitable deliverance To sustain the viability of NAVCO and DAVCO To identify and access economic and social development resources for rural communities To seek or initiate research that will identify or determine key social, economic and other factors to aid in sustainable development
Since its inception, NAVCO and the Village Councils progressed to achieve these objectives with the following activities: Village Council leaders participated and trained in leadership skills, learned about the Village Council Act, and improved accounting and computer skills. The Village Council leaders along with NAVCO representatives addressed with the ministries and the area representatives a variety of village issues such as boundaries and land, liquor licenses, etc. In coordination with NAVCO, the Village Council leaders worked to resolve emergency occurrences such as flooding, road damage, etc. NAVCO expresses the need to work closely with the ministries, in particular the area representatives, to create increased coordination and cooperation to reach our national goal of making Belize a strong and viable country. NAVCO stands committed to work with the newly elected village leaders to democratically govern village affairs. ### For more information: Contact: Mr. Orlando Dawson, Pres Tel: 668-4936/822-0253