Interior Minister Sar Kheng has told the secretariat of the National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development (NCDD) to ensure that sub-committees fulfil their duties.

Sar Kheng, who is also the NCDD chairman, emphasised working efficiency and the carrying out of decentralisation reforms.

His comments came at a Thursday NCDD meeting at the Ministry of Interior. The meeting focused on four agenda items, including discussing progress, problems and challenges for administrations in cities and districts.

The NCDD is comprised of four sub-committees to spearhead policy reforms and relevant standards before being submitted to the main body for approval. But in the past, the sub-committees had not fulfilled their roles and duties properly, Sar Kheng said.

“Based on this situation, I advised the NCDD secretariat to study and prepare mechanisms to ensure effectiveness in spearheading the task of reforming decentralisation,” he said.

Sar Kheng said the government had recently changed the NCDD member ranks by adding new leaders to enhance the effectiveness of leadership, coordination and decentralisation reforms.

NCDD deputy head Chan Sothea said since May 24, members have been added to the NCDD from 16 ministries and institutions.

The four sub-committees were set up in 2009. They are the sub-committees on taxation and finance; sub-national level administration staff; sub-national development plans, and functions of officials and financial resources.

“The secretariat of the NCDD has studied and requested revisions to the sub-committees based on some major reasons such as revisions and new members at ministries and institutions,” Sothea said.

He said some NCDD members could be changed based on the development of deeper and more complex and sweeping decentralisation reforms as well as the effectiveness of leadership, coordination and responsibility of each sub-committee.