Muchinga Province Deputy Permanent Secretary, Brian Sichande, says proper accountability of public resources and assets is critical to national development.
Mr Sichande notes that the inspection, verification and value determination of assets by the Ministry of Finance and National Planning, which is the backbone of the country`s economic development, is paramount to effectively manage public resources and assets.
“We want to see a country that accounts for everything in order to be at par with what requires replacement, use, or disposal,” he says.
The media reports that the Provincial Deputy Permanent Secretary made these remarks yesterday when Mr Vincent Banda, Assistant Director Stock Verification under the Controller Internal Audit in the Ministry of Finance and National Planning, paid a courtesy call on him at his office.
And, Mr Banda noted that the Ministry of Finance has started the process of supporting the smooth transition of assets from the former Central Statistics Office (CSO) to its successor, the Zambia Statistics Agency (ZAMSTAT).
Mr Banda said the main purpose of the visit to Muchinga is to physically verify assets as indicated in the asset registers.
He added that in the case of any surplus, the registers should be updated, whereas in a deficit case, investigations will be instituted.
“The asset register will be used to track and verify assets,” he stated.
Mr Banda further stated that physical verification of assets will help determine their condition, whether they are in good state or unserviceable.
He added that assets that still have value but could be in excess and not of use under ZAMSTAT will be transferred to other needy departments, while those that are obsolete and no longer needed will be recommended for disposal in line with the law.
The Central Statistics Office has devolved to ZAMSTAT through the Statistics Act of 2018, which legally reconstituted the former office into the new agency.
