Local government elections are still a year away, but Byron Shire Deputy Mayor, Sarah Ndiaye (Greens), is already asking passionate community members to consider running.
She has just won the prestigious NSW government’s Elected Representative Award – Regional/Rural, as part of the 2023 Ministers’ Awards for Women in Local Government, held last week at NSW Parliament House.
‘It’s not something you can do at the last minute, it’s a big commitment,’ Cr Ndiaye says, ‘but it is a really rewarding way to make a difference in your community, and we need people that are willing to do the work and really get involved and passionate about their community to do that’.
The Greens member says she is encouraging anyone interested to get in touch with her directly or ‘find out some other way’.
Being in local government isn’t easy
Not that being in local government is easy, the working teacher and parent adds.
Regional councillors in NSW receive some of the lowest remunerations in the country, often less than $35,000 per year.
The NSW government has only recently introduced councillor training and optional superannuation to the roles.
Historically, working in local government has been regarded almost as a voluntary service, with older white men often the only ones able to find the time.
‘The number of women elected to councils rose from 31 per cent to 39 per cent at the last local government elections, and I’d like that percentage to continue to grow, along with an increase in the number of women in leadership roles in councils,’ NSW Minister for Local Government, Ron Hoenig, said recently when announcing the 2023 Women in Local Government awards.
Information from the NSW Office of Local Government showed the most common age group of councillors in the state was 60-69 years, followed by 50-59 years, compared to a median population age of approximately 38.
Served since 2016
Cr Ndiaye has served on Council since 2016 as a Green, alongside Mayor Michael Lyon, who is a former Greens member.
He turned Independent after failing to be re-endorsed by the party.
While Cr Ndiaye has campaigned for years alongside local community members for greater access to affordable and sustainable housing in the Byron Shire, she says her work during Mullumbimby’s flood crisis in early 2022 was a significant part of her award nomination.
She helped coordinate a makeshift emergency evacuation centre for the town.
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