Declaration of General Policy
Province of Hainaut
District of Charleroi
Municipality of FARCIENNES
2007-2012
Farciennes is unfortunately the poorest municipality of the Walloon Region (French-speaking part of Belgium). Due to reasons relating to the region’s industrial past, our municipality has many disadvantaged areas, where part of the population lives in conditions approaching the poverty-line.
But all people are equal and each inhabitant of Farciennes deserves the best. No other power level than the Municipality is so close to the people. Thus it is on our level that we must act to guarantee maximum well-being to our fellow citizens.
Considering our difficulties, the work to be accomplished by the municipal government is huge. But we have to contribute to the economic and social recovery of our municipality in order to derive benefit for everyone’s well-being.
The Parti Socialiste (the French-speaking Socialist Party) emerged stronger from the last municipal election. Armed with our fellow-citizens’ support, the party will do its best to contribute to the global and coordinated development of Farciennes.
During this term of office the team in place wants to find structural solutions to improve the financial situation of our municipality and thus the life of our fellow-citizens.
That is why the Socialist majority decided to concentrate its action on 5 central points:
1. Employment
Our community has the highest unemployment rate of the Walloon Region (32%). We want to make every effort to coordinate the different relief funds, means and services, on municipal, regional or federal level, to allow all our fellow citizens to find a job as soon as possible.
The municipality will use any tools at its disposal and will act with determination.
The creation of a Deputy Burgomaster’s Office for employment will be the first step in that direction.
2. Housing
Access to decent housing is a basic right for any citizen.
To reach this goal we will favour, within the council houses sector, a social mix of residents as well as the purchase of houses by their occupants. Moreover, we will support the renovation of the housing stock of Sambre et Biesme social housing company.
In order to fulfil this policy the new Deputy Burgomaster’s Office for Housing will improve the health and hygiene in the housing located on our territory, it will fight against unscrupulous landlords and the increasing number of “letterboxes”, and it will hunt down and take over unoccupied buildings.
We will also create new residences (including villas and apartments) during this legislature, as well as a social estate agency with various operators.
3. La sécurité
Every citizen has the right to live in peace and security.
In order to contribute to reaching that goal, the municipal authorities will propose a global and coordinated plan of security and crime prevention.
That plan will consist of:
- a strengthening of the preventive actions and better targeting of those actions
- an increased physical presence of neighbourhood police in the field as well as an increased availability to our citizens
- a better securing of homes
- a strengthening of preventive actions towards our youth
- the creation of municipal administrative fines to fight against any social harassment.
4. A better quality of life
Public cleanliness and the environment will be a priority. We want a clean and untarnished living environment.
This is why a reorganization of the work programme is necessary and we have to give priority to community works.
Our road infrastructure will be improved or renovated via the three-year plans of the Walloon Region, particularly the rues Albert 1er, Henin, du Wainage, de la Cité De Brouckère, a section of the rues du Monciat and du Bois, the pavements of the rues A. Bocquet and de Beaucaire as well as safety facilities in the rue de Tergnée.
The further development of our territory will also be a priority.
5. Municipal finances and better governance
The financial situation of our municipality demands healthy, modern, drastic and imaginative management of our assets. Research into receipts and savings in expenditure must be carried out, both in the municipal government and the Social Service Department.
Each inhabitant of Farciennes has the right to expect quality service from his or her municipal government.
Thus we will endeavour:
- to create a better working environment for civil servants;
- to insist on perfect service to the citizens;
- to give more responsibilities to the civil servant in all areas of competence within the municipal government.
Finally, close collaboration with the different local committees will be extended across the board, in order to make the municipal policy as open as possible. Full attention will be given to equal opportunities in all the municipality’s decisions or projects.
Besides those priorities and depending on the evolution of the municipal finances, we want to pay particular attention and give a special priority to:
Social action, health, handicapped persons and senior citizens
Strengthening of the synergies between the various municipal government departments and the Social Service Department will be examined in order to further improve – at low cost – the different social services and actions of the Social Service Department for the most vulnerable among us.
Health is one of our concerns. This Deputy Burgomaster’s Office will thus create a Monitoring Centre Well-Being and Health in Farciennes. Moreover, actions already undertaken (free screening, health conferences, awareness campaigns in schools, etc.) will be continued and developed, and new actions will be undertaken.
To improve the quality of life of our seniors or handicapped persons, the municipality of Farciennes will create an Advisory Council for Senior Citizens and for Handicapped Persons in order to combine our actions and make them more effective.
Infancy, youth, education, sport and culture
We will continue to develop all of our actions aimed at our youth: extracurricular childcare, playgrounds, thematic training courses, sports and cultural workshops.
During this term of office we will give priority to the quality of our primary education network. We will promote the learning of basic subjects as well as the sense of effort and strictness in work and behaviour.
We will continue to support local clubs, within the limits of the municipality’s financial means. Moreover we will further renovate the sports infrastructure, particularly our sports hall. We will also step up the promotion of sports vouchers in order to improve the accessibility to sport for all.
The continuation and diversification of our Arts Centre’s activities, the continuation of its openness to the municipality and citizens and its recognition by the Communauté française (French-speaking Community) will also belong to our policy.
