Twenty-two national trainers today receive their certificates for successfully completing an intensive 5-day Trainers-of-Trainers (ToT) course on the UN-HABITAT training series on local elected leadership, held in Maseru, Lesotho from 30 April-5 May 2007. The ToT, jointly organized by UN-HABITAT’s Training and Capacity Building Branch (TCBB), Maseru City Council (MCC) and the Lesotho Institute for Public Administration and Management (LIPAM), is intended to build a pool of national trainers, many of who will immediately be called upon to train Maseru City Councillors in two weeks time. The activities are part of the capacity building component of the on-going Sustainable Maseru Programme.  The closing session, honoured by the presence of the Acting Town Clerk of Maseru City Council – Mr. M. Motanyane, as well as Honourable Councillors from Maseru City Council, recognised the dedicated efforts made by the course participants during the week to master and adapt the training materials. The participants had actively prepared and delivered sessions on the representation role, and the communication, policy making, financing, decision making and using power competencies. The relevance of the content, and the appreciation of the training techniques, was affirmed by the feedback received from a number of Councillors from Maseru City Council who attended several of the training sessions as client representatives. Some organisations also came to observe the training, and most importantly UNDP representatives from Governance Unit were amongst the observers.
Immediately following the ToT, and prior to the training of councillors, LIPAM and MCC will adapt the training materials, drawing from the feedback received during the ToT, and making the training applicable to the Lesotho context and decentralization process. Discussion is underway with the Ministry of Local Government to rollout the training programme to the rest of the country, once the first training in Maseru has been completed. The same pool of trainers will be used for this national rollout effort, in close collaboration with representatives from local districts. |
