NCDC supports Urban Safety programs
 

At the NCDC, an office — called the Urban Safety Unit — is being opened. The office comes under the NCDC Community and Social Services Department and directly focuses on co-ordinating the NCDC’s efforts with those of stakeholder agencies in addressing Port Moresby's safety issues.

The need for such an office arose after law and justice agencies — NCDC’s partners in this fight against crime — agreed a central point should be established to co-ordinate urban safety efforts.

About four months ago, City Hall began mobilising a team. Headed by City Manager Peter Loko and directly overseen by community and social services acting deputy city manager Iva Kola, the Urban Safety unit already has the services of an expert adviser — Steve Sims — from the Law and Justice Sector Program (LJSP) who moved into City Hall some two months ago.

Mr Sims’ job is to become the go-between for NCDC and LJSP and AusAID, soliciting resources, expertise, funding and providing advice to the NCDC on how best these pressing issues can be addressed.

Under the auspices of the NCDC and its Urban Safety Committee, efforts to combat law and order issues in Port Moresby were packaged into what is called the Yumi Lukautim Mosbi Projek (Let's Look After Moresby Project).

The Yumi Lukautim Mosbi Projek (YLMP) now becomes the implementation mechanism for a much bigger goal — the implementation of the National Government's Medium Term Development Strategy (MTDS).

Many will be aware of the MTDS and how the Government is trying to get the country back on the track to economic recovery. Under the strategy, the road to economic recovery is first of all to address the crime problem — a big barrier to the country’s economic recovery.

The National Government, through its National Coordinating Mechanism (NCM), has identified urban safety as one of the issues to be addressed. The onus was then given to the municipal authorities to spearhead these efforts. At the NCDC, the Urban Safety Committee was formed. The committee comprises members from law and justice sector agencies — the police, Correctional Institutional Services, Department of Justice and Attorney-General, Magisterial Services, National Planning and Implementation, Prime Minister's Department, Department of Transport, National Road Safety Council, AusAID, Peace Foundation Melanesia, Consultative Implementation Monitoring Council, the Justice Advisory Group, the Law and Justice Sector Program Working Group and the Community Justice Liaison Unit.
The committee has been sitting monthly since the end of last year. 

Under the YLMP, initiatives taken by the NCDC already underway are: 

• NINE-MILE — The support of a farm project by the youths with tools, a water pump and vegetable seeds to the value of K9,000

• ARUNI — The issuance of minor cleaning contracts to Baruni youths as a temporary initiative to get them organised and co-operative. Negotiations underway to get them to become more involved in constructive community-oriented projects. Jimmy Barnes visited the village to give encouragement to these youths resulting in huge publicity for the YLMP;

• KOKI — YLMP is trying to utilise an existing youth program by Dame Carol Kidu. Called the Hetura Youth project, the YLMP is now working closely with Hetura to get youths in Koki to become further involved in their community;

• BADILI — The formation of the “Friends of Police’’ headed by Inspector Vince Locas, of Badili Police Station. YLMP will be working hand-in-hand with this community policing initiative to urge preventative policing in the Badili, Talai and Gorobe areas;

• BADILI (Talai and Gorobe) — Awareness and networking underway with the people of Talai and Gorobe on YLMP;

• HOHOLA (Burns Peak) — Awareness and networking underway on YLMP;

• MORATA (Stage 1, 2, 3 and 4) — Awareness, networking, as well as the donation of music equipment;

• GEREHU (Stage 2 — Tete Settlement) — Awareness on YLMP and the donation of sports equipment; and 

• VABUKORI (Tainaladeara) — Awareness and the donation of sports equipment.

Most funding for these projects is currently coming from AusAID’s Law and Justice Sector Program (LJSP). But for the medium term, the NCDC is now working on incorporating these urban safety initiatives into its Community and Social Services business plan so that they are reflected on the overall corporate plan.

Since these initiatives are being taken in conjunction with the LJSP and AusAID and will also reflect the LJSP Sector Strategic Framework strategies and goals where applicable.

The NCDC is also looking at utilising this opportunity given by LJSP and AusAID for capacity-building and institutional-strengthening, especially of the Community and Social Services Department so that it can sustain the YLMP and the various projects started under it after the aid has gone.

The commission will also be looking at coming up with a proper strategy on urban safety so that these needs are addressed practically and progressively.

City Hall is working hard to put in a good groundwork. NCDC management is also hoping that all stakeholders, especially government institutions in the law and justice sector who are members on the NCD Urban Safety Committee, also realise the worth of their contribution and contribute fully to this program.

A start is being made on this very challenging developmental front.

It is a small step, a mere drop in the ocean, but we hope the step will become two, then three, then turn into leaps and bounds; that the drop will create a ripple and might become a wave. 

Port Moresby is our capital city. It deserves better — much, much better.

 

(The Yumi Lukautim Mosbi Projek is a collaborative effort between the National Capital District Commission and the Australian Government aid agency AusAID's Law and Justice Sector Program. It is aimed at crime reduction and prevention in the National Capital District, in line with the National Government's Medium Term Development Strategy addressing law and order issues as a means to economic recovery).
 

By

Grace, NCDC PR Section